Man hurt in shooting at BCMEA training centre on Mitchell Island
Posted March 12, 2019 12:44 pm.
Last Updated March 12, 2019 5:24 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
RICHMOND (NEWS 1130) – A man was rushed to hospital after he was shot at the BC Maritime Employers Association’s (BCMEA) waterfront training facility on Mitchell Island.
A 25-year-old man was shot Tuesday morning at about 9 a.m. RCMP say witnesses have reported a man dressed in black running from the scene.
It’s believed to have been a targeted incident. Police say the victim was taken to hospital in serious condition but is now stable.
Mounties say a vehicle fire on No. 7 Road near Westminster Highway may be linked to the shooting.
Lauren Chan with the BCMEA says it happened around 9 a.m. at the Waterfront training centre on Mitchell Island. “He was tended to immediately by staff and medical response arrived very quickly on-site and took him to emergency.”
“We’re concerned, of course, for the safety, health and well-being of the individual who was injured, as well as everybody else who was involved,” Chan said.
Police cruisers at the scene of a shooting at the BC Maritime Employers Association waterfront training centre on Mitchell Island on Mar. 12, 2019. (CityNews Vancouver)
If you have any information about the shooting or the car fire, you are asked to call Richmond RCMP at 604-278-1212.
‘We’re traumatized’
Rob Ashton, the head of the union representing the worker who was shot, says everyone is in shock over what happened.
“We’re traumatized,” Ashton said. “Our employee assistance program has been dealing with this situation since it happened and working with our employer groups, the local representatives, we’re getting the workers the help that they need.”
He says the focus now is on getting them the help they need to recover from this trauma.
“It still is shock, disbelief,” Ashton adds. “We are currently working with our employer group and the RCMP with their investigation.”
He says the victim is a new recruit with International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada. Ashton says he was shot while taking part in a container-loading exercise at the training centre.
– With files from Marcella Bernardo
