Whyte riot: when a party turns ugly
Today reporter Renato Gandia witnessed the fun that turned into mayhem on Edmonton's Whyte Avenue Saturday night. This story appeared in Fort McMurray Today May 30, 2006.
By RENATO GANDIA
Today staff
It's been called different names: Blue Mile -- an homage to Calgary's Red Mile in 2004, Whyte Avenue's War Zone, Whyte Mile, Whyte Trash, among others.
When the Edmonton Oilers charted another victory on Saturday, cheering crowds spilled over into Edmonton's Old Strathcona yet again.
By 8 p.m. the stretch between 109 and 103 Streets on Whyte was still quiet but the police were seen lining up on the sidewalk, getting ready for the eventual burst of people.
An hour after that, people started to trickle to the sidewalks from bars in the area. The trickles became torrents of fans and curious people high-fiving each other, including police on hand to monitor the situation.
The officers kept people to the sidewalks as cars paraded down the avenue honking their horns.
Some motorists poked out of their sunroofs with video cameras.
On the corner of 104 Street, a man in a wheelchair played a clarinet. Some women danced to his music while others shelled out coins in appreciation.
At this time, the police still had control of the crowd, which kept its jubilation on the sidewalks.
But by 11 p.m. police could no longer hold people to the sidewalks, and in one collective push they were on the street, whooping and swapping high-fives.
Some men began their own hockey game in the middle of the street but it only lasted for five minutes as the throng thickened and the chanting became louder, "We want the Cup!"
I am not a bonafide hockey fan, but since the Oilers got into the western conference final, I've been following the series.
I'm not opposed to celebration and partying. In fact part of the reasons why I rushed to Whyte Avenue after the second period of the game was to witness and be part of the fun.
And there I saw how people not only trashed my favourite Edmonton spot, I witnessed how they trashed themselves.
A number of fans, who looked as though they had one too many, mounted a telephone booth and threw themselves onto the cheering crowd at the intersection of 105 Street.
One car dealership cleared its lot lest out-of-control partyers trash the new vehicles.
Another group carried a grocery cart amidst the sea of partyers. Later on, the same group carried one of their own in the shopping cart until people lost their grip and he fell over. "It's insane," the young people yelled. "I love it."
The street reeked of alcohol.
As I sat atop a garbage bin, a number of people handed me empty bottles and cans for disposal.
A man walked with a sign that said "Shirts off for Horcoff," which encouraged a woman to mount another man's shoulder and flash her breasts to the crowd.
Fireworks flew from the middle of the crowd, while an ambulance stood by just off Whyte and police watched from the top of the Met Hotel.
After midnight, there were nine bonfires in the blocked-off the street.
At this point, I knew it was time for me to go home.
© Copyright 2006, Fort McMurray Today.
By RENATO GANDIA
Today staff
It's been called different names: Blue Mile -- an homage to Calgary's Red Mile in 2004, Whyte Avenue's War Zone, Whyte Mile, Whyte Trash, among others.
When the Edmonton Oilers charted another victory on Saturday, cheering crowds spilled over into Edmonton's Old Strathcona yet again.
By 8 p.m. the stretch between 109 and 103 Streets on Whyte was still quiet but the police were seen lining up on the sidewalk, getting ready for the eventual burst of people.
An hour after that, people started to trickle to the sidewalks from bars in the area. The trickles became torrents of fans and curious people high-fiving each other, including police on hand to monitor the situation.
The officers kept people to the sidewalks as cars paraded down the avenue honking their horns.
Some motorists poked out of their sunroofs with video cameras.
On the corner of 104 Street, a man in a wheelchair played a clarinet. Some women danced to his music while others shelled out coins in appreciation.
At this time, the police still had control of the crowd, which kept its jubilation on the sidewalks.
But by 11 p.m. police could no longer hold people to the sidewalks, and in one collective push they were on the street, whooping and swapping high-fives.
Some men began their own hockey game in the middle of the street but it only lasted for five minutes as the throng thickened and the chanting became louder, "We want the Cup!"
I am not a bonafide hockey fan, but since the Oilers got into the western conference final, I've been following the series.
I'm not opposed to celebration and partying. In fact part of the reasons why I rushed to Whyte Avenue after the second period of the game was to witness and be part of the fun.
And there I saw how people not only trashed my favourite Edmonton spot, I witnessed how they trashed themselves.
A number of fans, who looked as though they had one too many, mounted a telephone booth and threw themselves onto the cheering crowd at the intersection of 105 Street.
One car dealership cleared its lot lest out-of-control partyers trash the new vehicles.
Another group carried a grocery cart amidst the sea of partyers. Later on, the same group carried one of their own in the shopping cart until people lost their grip and he fell over. "It's insane," the young people yelled. "I love it."
The street reeked of alcohol.
As I sat atop a garbage bin, a number of people handed me empty bottles and cans for disposal.
A man walked with a sign that said "Shirts off for Horcoff," which encouraged a woman to mount another man's shoulder and flash her breasts to the crowd.
Fireworks flew from the middle of the crowd, while an ambulance stood by just off Whyte and police watched from the top of the Met Hotel.
After midnight, there were nine bonfires in the blocked-off the street.
At this point, I knew it was time for me to go home.
© Copyright 2006, Fort McMurray Today.
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