No significant incidents after the Panda Game, police say
CBC News | Posted: October 1, 2023 11:27 PM | Last Updated: October 3, 2023
Afterparty hosted at U of O; universities split cost of policing
Ottawa police said there were no significant incidents in Ottawa's Sandy Hill or Old Ottawa South neighbourhoods Sunday evening after two years of out-of-control partying at times following the annual Panda Game.
The football game between the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees and Carleton Ravens is a highlight on the fall calendar for the cross-town rivals.
In recent years, however, kickoff has been followed by rowdy behaviour that's left many residents of the U of O-adjacent Sandy Hill wary of the event.
Parties following last year's game resulted in multiple arrests for public intoxication and mischief and dozens of tickets. In 2021, thousands of people swarmed Sandy Hill near campus and some partygoers flipped a car on Russell Avenue.
This year's game ended with the Gee-Gees claiming a last-second 18-16 win over the Ravens. As the crowd of mostly students poured out of TD Place, there were no signs of unruliness.
In an email at 1:30 a.m. Monday, Ottawa police said they had arrested two people for public intoxication and thanked people for respecting communities and going to organized activities.
WATCH | The game's dramatic ending:
Marked and unmarked police vehicles could be seen patrolling several blocks of Sandy Hill after the game.
Large groups of officers were stationed at some intersections, while bike patrols pedalled around, keeping watch for any overserved revelers.
Rideau-Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante said on CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning she was up until about 1 a.m. walking around with school and bylaw workers.
"I think what we saw (after the game) is students sort of recharging their batteries, they went home and had something to eat, then the party started back up around 8 p.m.," she said.
"Everyone was pretty tuckered out … and you could see by 11, 11:30 p.m. the streets were clearing."
'More relaxed'
Minutes after this year's game ended, first-year student Avery Brazier said she was expecting "a lot of parties" Sunday night.
"Hopefully not too much trouble, that's what I'm hoping for," said Brazier, who goes to university in Guelph, Ont., but had returned home to cheer for the Ravens.
"[We'll be] having a lot of fun, being responsible and being safe," said Will Wingrove, a Carleton University student, about his plans for the night ahead.
Colin Sauve, a Sandy Hill resident who was out enjoying a local park Sunday afternoon, said he noticed some yelling and groups of people milling around — but overall, the neighbourhood was much calmer than in previous years.
"There's a lot of police, so it's more relaxed," he said, adding that despite the trouble in 2021, the Panda Game weekend is a "fun part of the year."
He said it usually gets pretty loud later at night, "whenever the alcohol starts seeping in."
"They're loud, but you just close the door," Sauve said.
Preventative measures
The game was shifted to Sunday instead of Saturday this year. Publicly, the universities said at the time it was because of the Ottawa Redblacks game on Saturday.
The University of Ottawa was also hosting an afterparty on their campus where students could bring their own alcohol and provided a shuttle bus to the ByWard Market.
"There was poutine … they had food trucks, you could tell the students weren't in a state of dehydration, they were well-fed and generally enjoying the evening," Plante said.
Carleton and U of O split the cost for police presence this year, which is usually around $500,000, she said.
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