Photo by Vince Fedoroff
WANTON VANDALISM – A number of vehicles were broken into at the city’s airport recently, including the Dodge Caravan above and the car and truck below.
Photo by Photo Submitted
NO SECURITY PROVIDED – Signs warn users of the long-term parking lot at Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport that the lot is not supervised by the airport’s security staff. Photo courtesy GOVERNMENT OF YUKON
Personal items had been left visible to thieves
In the wake of an extensive vandalism and theft spree at Erik Nielson Whitehorse International Airport, motorists are being reminded they park there at their own risk.
In the wake of an extensive vandalism and theft spree at Erik Nielson Whitehorse International Airport, motorists are being reminded they park there at their own risk.
About 20 vehicles in the long-term parking lot were broken into last weekend.
“All the windows broken were back windows, and it appears personal items were left visible,” said Doris Wurfbaum, spokesperson for the Department of Highways and Public Works.
The smashing of windows is not something the RCMP have commonly seen for vehicle break-ins, Const. Julia Fox said Monday.
Although airport security staff patrol the security access lane, their primary duties are to keep the airport terminal building safe.
“All vehicle owners park at the airport terminal building at their own risk,” Wurfbaum said.
There are signs in the parking lot that indicate that the area is unsupervised.
Also, ticket stubs for parking also read, “All vehicles and contents are parking on airport property at the risk of the owners.”
A vehicle was reported last Saturday as having been stolen from the airport. The precise day of the theft remains unclear, as the owner had been away for some time.
Police do not know if any additional vehicles have been stolen from the airport.
Since there are still vehicles with broken windows in the parking lot, some of their owners may not have returned to Whitehorse from wherever they have travelled to.
Both the Department of Highways and Public Works and the RCMP caution those who park in the long-term lot to hide any valuables.
“The department empathizes with the vehicle owners involved and reminds those using the parking lot that they do at their own risk and to ensure personal items are not left visible so as to not attract vandals,” Wurfbaum said.
The investigation into the incident is ongoing.
Add your comments or reply via Twitter @whitehorsestar
In order to encourage thoughtful and responsible discussion, website comments will not be visible until a moderator approves them. Please add comments judiciously and refrain from maligning any individual or institution. Read about our user comment and privacy policies.
Your name and email address are required before your comment is posted. Otherwise, your comment will not be posted.
Comments (32)
Up 0 Down 0
Maybe we should have private sector to cover the airport on Aug 17, 2015 at 2:37 pm
Private security.
Up 20 Down 2
john henry on Aug 15, 2015 at 1:52 pm
It's every man or women for themselves, why put comments out it does not do
any good anyway, it looks like a gossip show !
Up 5 Down 0
Groucho d'North on Aug 15, 2015 at 9:13 am
Lost: Your example of YG compensating property owners from flood damage in comparison to vehicle break-ins and theft misses your intended mark as Overland flood insurance is not available in Canada. But progress is slowly being made to introduce it soon.
Check it out: http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/flood-insurance-that-isn-t-there-when-you-need-it-1.1869651
Up 10 Down 30
Josey Wales on Aug 14, 2015 at 9:51 pm
bobby..."Then again, that car that got stolen was left in plain view!"
Love it, finely crafted sarcasm.
please keep it up.
Up 15 Down 1
Me on Aug 14, 2015 at 7:01 pm
Yukoner want growth and development..... That's what happens. You all need to learn to take the good with the bad. Take a look at the whole Alaska highway. Many of the towns have grown quite a bit from development, and it does bring higher crime rates.... Drug dealers are in all of those towns making their fortune. Pretty sick if you ask me.... Maybe all Yukon People need to ask themselves exactly what kind of community development do they want and how are is the Yukon planning for it?
Up 17 Down 0
Bobby Bitman on Aug 14, 2015 at 2:47 pm
Considering that this morning there is a new rash of car break ins in Copper Ridge, and one stolen vehicle - all from Thursday night, as reported on facebook Whitehorse Buy and Sell (in all likelihood more crime than this went on), looks like parking at home in Whitehorse is not safe either.
Then again, that car that got stolen was left in plain view!
Up 12 Down 0
Lost in the Yukon on Aug 14, 2015 at 1:37 pm
Is the Yukon Party consistent?
A few years ago some people experienced damages to their property because of flooding. If you live on a flood plain ... Well you take your chances. The land was not owned by government yet they chose ( on 2 occasions ) to provide compensation. Even though home owners should carry insurance.
Now you have people parked on YG land, have paid YG to do so (and a good lawyer will have a field day with the "at your own risk" defence) for a service YG promotes ... yet YG (Yukon Party) says tough luck, your problem.
It may be apples and oranges but not quite.
Up 6 Down 0
Airport parking lot designed wrong on Aug 14, 2015 at 12:49 pm
Doesn't take in account for security and flow
Up 14 Down 1
A place to be avoided on Aug 14, 2015 at 9:44 am
Maybe there's an opportunity here - let out-of-towners park in your driveway, offer a drop-off and pick-up service, and charge a few bucks? Probably more convenient - and safer - for them and their vehicles. We're local, but if we can't find someone to give us a ride, we take a cab - just not worth the hassle at the airport.
Up 72 Down 3
north_of_60 on Aug 12, 2015 at 8:52 pm
The government doesn't care; we're supposed to have insurance for those crimes. Their catch-&-release just-us business ensures a healthy crop of petty criminals on the street to take advantage of the lack of security in parking lots all over town.
Up 187 Down 2
larry tooch on Aug 12, 2015 at 6:19 pm
For the amount of time you see security smoking there brains out in the parking lot, maybe they can get some exercise and patrol the parking lot and actually do their job instead of bugging people in the drop off lane. Security at the airport is such a joke.
Up 53 Down 0
Billy Weezer on Aug 12, 2015 at 6:14 pm
(Although airport security staff patrol the security access lane, their primary duties are to keep the airport terminal building safe.).... But yet they walk the parking lots picking up luggage buggies that are left everywhere. How hard is it to take one of them to patrol a parking lot once a hour. Nothing much going on in the terminal and they have 6 security guards on at a time doing nothing.
Up 61 Down 1
YukonMax on Aug 12, 2015 at 4:26 pm
For those of you who keep saying take a cab, leave your vehicle at home, get a ride from a friend, I hope you'll never get into territorial politics. Yukoners from the communities would totally be left out of your policies.
Up 53 Down 2
What? on Aug 12, 2015 at 4:02 pm
How, exactly, does Ms Wurfbaum know what contents were in the vehicles? What a callous remark.
Up 64 Down 13
Lost in the Yukon on Aug 12, 2015 at 2:28 pm
Doris Wurfbaum, I sure hope someone else wrote your lines and you were forced to read them. To blame the victim and suggest they brought this on themselves is appalling. It appears the department's position is to say "not my fault, don't blame me".
I agree with JWhite ... Doris, your response should have been to say how very sorry the department is that this happened and you are looking at ways of reducing the risk to law abiding citizens of Yukon.
Up 41 Down 3
Always a Yukoner on Aug 12, 2015 at 1:56 pm
Very sad, especially knowing that there is security at the airport, get some cameras installed. I guess one needs to take a cab, even though it's an extra expense, but much cheaper then one's deductible. Whitehorse use to be so safe, not so much anymore, just as bad as a big City.
Up 45 Down 102
Yukoner on Aug 12, 2015 at 11:45 am
Catch them, take them in the bush don't come back with them! That's the way things are going in this sh#%hole.
Up 72 Down 0
Stacy on Aug 12, 2015 at 11:25 am
"it appears personal items were left visible” - that is not true. There was absolutely nothing in our car, but the window was smashed and glove box rummaged through.
Up 60 Down 8
Hmmm.. on Aug 12, 2015 at 11:10 am
Isn't "you shouldn't have valuables visible in a car, so it doesn't get broken into", a water downed version and same line of thinking that used to say " she wouldn't get raped if she'd didn't dress that way"?
Up 53 Down 11
Groucho d'North on Aug 12, 2015 at 10:26 am
Looks like all the ingredients are available to set up a bait car or two to catch these miscreants - that is if the authorities really wanted to do something about this problem - which appears to be a question begging an answer right now.
Up 57 Down 4
Matt on Aug 12, 2015 at 8:13 am
It is appalling, given the level of 24 hour security at the airport that there is no one monitoring a CCTV screen looking at all quandrants including the parking lot.
Up 73 Down 0
Charles on Aug 12, 2015 at 8:06 am
I was heartbroken to return from holidays Monday night to find my vehicle with the rear side window smashed in. I looked around me and several other vehicles had the exact same window smashed in. These windows are the most expensive to replace on a vehicle, with the one on my Focus costing $675. (I will be using insurance.) But I didn't leave any valuables in the vehicle nor would it have been easy to retrieve much from such a small window. This was a malicious act on the part of a criminal to inflict as much damage on as many people as possible and they knew what they were doing. I hope the airport acts on this and steps up security there with surveillance.
Up 64 Down 65
Dave on Aug 11, 2015 at 9:42 pm
I agree that the crime in the city has gotten out of hand. It's not just the airport. And, like whenever there are crime sprees, it always seems to be a small group of people perpetrating the crimes. Maybe the RCMP are working this angle. Maybe I'm wrong. What about that gang that is supposedly working their way into town? I've noticed quite a few scumbags drifting around Main Street during the daytime. I'm not downtown at nights so I don't know what's happening but I can only imagine what kinda crap is walking the streets.
Up 70 Down 4
Jwhite on Aug 11, 2015 at 7:46 pm
I don't believe that personal items were left visible in all 20 vehicles. Instead of blaming the victims, perhaps the Yukon government spokesperson could have said "we're so sorry this happened to innocent people, we'll examine whether there's anything we can do to prevent it in the future"
Up 52 Down 4
Doug Rutherford on Aug 11, 2015 at 6:14 pm
I think that, if you check with a fair amount of case law that states that if they charge, they are responsible for damage. Getting a lawyer if you own one of these vehicles, would be a pretty good start.
Up 230 Down 2
Jack Malone on Aug 11, 2015 at 5:20 pm
I guess the airport security officers were too busy standing around smoking and hassling people who park for 5 minutes in front of the airport. Perhaps these security officers should walk through the parking lot once in a while. Millions were spent on that parking lot: paving, lights, gates, etc. - in the end, it is just a great place for thieves to go window shopping. YTG never takes responsibility.
Up 87 Down 100
Interested in our economy on Aug 11, 2015 at 4:44 pm
So, mining is a bust and now the Yukon Government and Eric Neilson Airport Authority is going to watch our tourism industry take a beating with the increase in theft and crime in Whitehorse. Tourists with bikes stolen, campers broken into, cars stolen at airport parking lots is just one more nail in our increasing crime stricken city. Police, airport security could make a difference here with a little proactive measures and try to catch these pr**ks and set some hard examples. Yukon Justice and judges should also set some hard examples in court to provide deterrence to these pr**ks that don't care about others.
Up 56 Down 25
Dumb on Aug 11, 2015 at 4:36 pm
Just dumb. If you offer parking up there, have security if you are going to charge. 20 vehicles? These thieves will just go window shopping. My advice? Park at home and maybe if enough of us do that, the stupid idiots running the show will lose a bunch of money and get into problems. A security guard driving by once in a while might help too….
Up 63 Down 21
Lost in the Yukon on Aug 11, 2015 at 4:25 pm
Classy Justice, real classy. However I bet if it was your bosses vehicle or the Minister's it would be a different song being sung right now.
Up 53 Down 5
Paul Clements on Aug 11, 2015 at 4:02 pm
And the Airport collects a Parking Fee to boot!
Up 23 Down 95
Josey Wales on Aug 11, 2015 at 3:40 pm
don't ya just love this cycle of stupid?
all levels of government use our taxes to CCTV and have "their" assets monitored and even patrolled. another level of government does catch and release "justice".
maybe we should get like a GIS app. that illustrates where in this criminal infested sty I used to just refer to as home, or Whitehorse...is patrolled and perhaps a wee bit safer to leave your sun glasses on the dash?
rhetorical...it is nowhere now.
Yet another level of government enforces existing laws, or so should at least.
real laws CCC ones not nanny state revenue generating "by-laws".
funny that...they patrol jack, but may react to a crime.
if they have time, if your crime is one greater than another...so getting a R.C.M.P. outta their car and sleuthing...is more like lotto max lottery.
wanna solve your own crime? Oh boy will you get the full force of the law tossed at you.
We should change our sign at city limits.
"Welcome to Whitehorse, enter at your own risk and lock in a safe everything you love."
I know it is a long one, but it is far from "just" the airport...the whole place is now a sty.
IMHO...political correctness, Y.O.A, Gladue, more inclusive hug a thug liberal thinking for less special criminal scum, lack of castle laws, lack of being able to react to the scumbags....all HAVE...REPEAT HAVE...contributed very greatly to get us to the level of styness we now are.
what a s**thole...downtown soon to be just like east van.
Up 80 Down 51
June Jackson on Aug 11, 2015 at 3:40 pm
So..... the department is saying...its the vehicle owners fault???? Yukon justice at its finest.
“The department empathizes with the vehicle owners involved and reminds those using the parking lot that they do at their own risk and to ensure personal items are not left visible so as to not attract vandals,” Wurfbaum said.