On Friday, July 23 the Whistler RCMP received a complaint about an outdoor full moon party taking place on Crown land in the Callaghan Valley. The police made the decision not to break the party up but rather to monitor traffic in and out of the area for violations and impaired drivers.
They dumped out alcohol, which was illegal to drink on public lands, but allowed partiers to continue to the site.
At roughly 4 a.m. the RCMP responded to a request for assistance from a male after his girlfriend possibly suffered an overdose. She regained consciousness shortly afterwards but was incoherent. There was no sign of intoxication by alcohol and drugs are suspected.
The boyfriend then took his girlfriend to the Whistler Health Care Centre for treatment.
Sergeant Shawn LeMay says outdoor parties are often popular for drug use, which is a concern for the RCMP.
"It's usually pills, thought to be ecstasy or something different, but it's not even close," said LeMay. "It's usually a combination of products, including household cleaning products, chemicals, something they put into nail polish, that's pressed into a pill and then sold to an unsuspecting person."
Recent lab tests of seized drugs have revealed that many are chemical compounds that simulate medical drugs, but are far riskier to consume.
As well, Sgt. LeMay says the RCMP is turning up Ketamine recently, a drug known as Special K that is similar to the date rape drug. It can cause the person taking it to become drowsy.
Laptop recovered with assistance
On July 27 a male was charged with possession of stolen property after he was apprehended in the Whistler Public Library attempting to use a laptop that was taken from a woman just minutes earlier. She had put the laptop down on Main Street and someone had taken it without her noticing.
A male companion called the police and provided a description of a suspicious individual. He then assisted in the search for the suspect and laptop.
On further investigation the male was wanted on a warrant for failing to appear in court for past offences in Whistler, including an assault charge. He was held until he could be seen by a Justice of the Peace, then released. He will appear on the possession of stolen property charge on Nov. 13.
He is also being investigated with the possibility of laying further theft-related charges.
Motorcyle crashes adding up in Sea to Sky
While motorcycles represent a fraction of vehicles on the road, from May 1 to July 26 they represented 11 of the 70 crashes reported on the Sea to Sky Highway.
Five of those incidents resulted in injuries, including an incident reported last week where the operator was impaired. There were also four accidents to the north of Whistler in Pemberton and along the Duffey Lake Road, some or all of which may be related to debris on the road.
Cyclists are also having issues. Three have been hit by motor vehicles this summer; two were treated for injuries.
Impaired driver also arrested for break and enter
On Saturday evening, July 24, the Whistler RCMP received a complaint of a possible impaired driver heading north on Highway 99 from the heli-port. The vehicle was located by police as it entered Pemberton. The driver failed a roadside test. He then provided two samples of 0.130 per cent, well above the legal threshold of 0.05 per cent. The driver was arrested for impaired driving and released on a promise to appear.
A short while later the driver was arrested again after attempting to return to his seized car in the towing yard in Pemberton. A 42-year-old male from Penticton is now also facing charges for break and enter, as well as impaired driving.
It was a quiet week for impaired driving compared to previous weeks, but one other driver - a 26-year-old resident of Whistler - was given a 24-hour driving suspension and faces another 90-day driving prohibition after being detained at 2:30 a.m. Monday.
