Stolen cars, school bus, found submerged in Fraser River; environmental toll not yet known

It’s like an underwater used car lot.

Less than two weeks after a stolen Mazda ended up in ended up in the Fraser River near Maquabeak Park with its lights on and engine running, police reported finding three other submerged vehicles, including a school bus.

The vehicles: “vehicles appear to have been at this location for some time,” according to a statement from Coquitlam RCMP media relations officer Cpl. Alexa Hodgins.

Police have recovered a Honda Civic from the river. The car had been reported stolen in 2010.

Asked if the Fraser River at Maquabeak Park is a popular spot for criminals to dump cars, Hodgins responded that police: “are asking anyone with information regarding the vehicles in the water to contact our investigators at 604-945-1550.”

Due to environmental concerns, the rest of vehicle recovery operation will be led by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy. The ministry is working with the City of Coquitlam, ICBC, police, the Canadian Coast Guard and Coquitlam Towing to come up with a plan to safely pull the vehicles from the drink.

At this point, officials don’t know what impact the dumped cars may have had on the ecology of the river, according to a message from the ministry.

“At this time no observation of pollution has been reported,” the ministry stated.