Engineering Students Get Creative With Beetle Prank

Authorities in British Columbia urged hikers and climbers to stay away from a rock face above a highway where a red Volkswagen Beetle shell was suspended—an apparent prank by engineering students, per the AP. BC Parks was working to remove the Beetle and expects to do so within the week, said the province's Environment Ministry. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police and park rangers were investigating.

The car shell appeared on the rock face above Highway 99 in Squamish, British Columbia, last week with a large "E" on its roof, indicating University of British Columbia engineering students were carrying on a tradition of placing Beetle shells in difficult locations. In 2009, a Beetle fell from the Iron Workers Memorial Bridge, and Vancouver police arrested five students in a failed attempt to suspend it from the span. A spokesperson for the university did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Squamish Mayor Armand Hurford said the area around the Stawamus Chief rock formation is a "sacred place" with deep cultural meaning to the Squamish Nation. He said the area is also popular among hikers and climbers, adding that what "may have felt like an innocent prank" has affected the community. "This is an area that deserves respect, and that wasn't the case here."