Almost 150 people required hospital treatment and close to 100 were arrested after rioters swept through downtown Vancouver following a Canucks loss to the Boston Bruins in the decisive Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.
Vancouver Coastal Health spokeswoman Anna Marie D'Angelo said Thursday three stabbing victims have been admitted and an unidentified man is in critical condition with head injuries after a fall.
She said most of the rioting victims were treated at St. Paul's Hospital in downtown Vancouver, while about 40, including the stabbing cases and the head injury patient, were being treated at Vancouver General Hospital.
Rioting and looting left cars burned, stores in shambles and windows shattered over a roughly ten block radius of the city's main shopping district
Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu said nine officers were injured, including one who required 14 stitches after being hit with a thrown brick. Chu said some officers suffered bite marks. He said 15 cars were burned, including two police cars.
Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said ''organized hoodlums bent on creating chaos incited the riot'' and noted the city proved with the 2010 Winter Olympics that it could hold peaceful gatherings. A local business leader estimated more than 50 businesses have been damaged.
''They were here to make trouble and they succeeded,'' Robertson said.
Vancouver city councilor Suzanne Anton said the rioting has shaken the city and overshadowed the hockey team's playoff run.
It was similar to the scene that erupted in the city in 1994 following the Canucks' Game 7 loss to the New York Rangers.
Anton said there was no loss of life or police brutality in this latest incident. She said dozens of volunteers patrolled the city's entertainment strip on Thursday, picking up debris and garbage.
One of the volunteers, Al Cyrenne, carried his broom downtown to clean up the damage.
Some people just can't enjoy a game without getting involved. Here are a few unruly spectators.
''I can't believe the scene. Just talking about it bring me to tears. I can't believe the people of Vancouver would do this. It's just a few idiots.''
While police said it was mostly young thugs responsible for the mayhem overnight, an equally young crew turned up in jeans and rubber gloves, some with Canucks jerseys, all carrying plastic garbage bags.
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