Homecoming weekend at the University of Guelph put people’s safety at “serious risk,” resulting in “several” criminal charges and putting a strain on the city’s emergency department, according to officials.
One student from the Ontario school described the “chaos” that erupted on Saturday when thousands gathered for an unauthorized street party on Chancellors Way.
“People throwing cans at each other, yelling, causing fights,” recalled Erik Rutledge, a second-year economics and finance student.
Photos and videos shared on social media captured some of the wild behavior.
Rutledge observed the situation from above.
“We had a little party in our apartment,” he told . “We were only allowed 20 people in, so we got wristbands for them.”
homecoming guelph hoco Video stills from an unsanctioned street party on Chancellors Way in Guelph, Ont., on Sept. 26, 2026. (Source: Instagram/@iamasevvy)
At one point, two young men tried to climb up the side of the building, and one of them lost his grip.
“I saw someone fall three storeys while trying to get into my apartment,” Rutledge said. “I don’t know who they are.”
Then, speaking directly to the camera, he added: “Hope you’re OK if you hear this.”
RAW VIDEO: Homecoming chaos at the University of Guelph Homecoming celebrations got out of hand at the University of Guelph.
The Guelph Police Service closed down Chancellors Way around 4 p. m. As the party continued, they extended that closure to nearby streets.
“It was the craziest Homecoming I’ve ever been to in my entire life,” said Isa Elfarse, a second-year student at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo. “Let alone the craziest Ho Co I’ve seen at Guelph ever.”
Videos circulating on social media showed police with tactical gear attempting to control the crowd while several students threw red smoke bombs into the street.
Police tactical unit helped ‘restore order’
The Guelph Police Service released a public statement on Monday afternoon.
“As things escalated and public safety became more threatened, extra police resources-including members of our Tactics and Rescue Unit-were deployed to assist frontline officers and support emergency responders working within the crowd,” they wrote. “Their efforts helped restore order, prevent further injuries and allow emergency personnel safe access to those needing help.”
homecoming hoco guelph Damage after an unsanctioned Homecoming street party at the University of Guelph on Sept. 27, 2026. (Rowen Fisler/ )
Police also laid “several” charges related to Homecoming activities including causing disturbances and alcohol-related offences. They mentioned that investigators were still reviewing photos and videos which could lead to additional charges.
Guelph police informed on Monday that “well over” 1,000 people attended but nothing is confirmed yet.
“Anecdotally , sounds like past years’ estimates put attendance around 5 ,000 people , and this year’s crowd seemed larger. ” P>
ER was ‘stretched beyond capacity’ H2 >
Guelph General Hospital reported about 60 injuries related to Homecoming events , with “head injuries caused by thrown bottles , lacerations , and intoxication.” P >
“Homecoming-related visits put significant pressure on critical hospital resources,” stated Dr. Alex Folkl , chief of emergency medicine. “This weekend , our Emergency Department was stretched beyond capacity. Had we also faced an influx of seriously ill patients or even a small multi-patient trauma event , there was a real risk that we wouldn’t have been able to provide every patient with timely care.” P >
GUELPH GENERAL HOSPITAL GUELPH GENERAL HOSPITAL ON SEPT.14 ,2026.( ALEXANDRA HOLYK / )
MAYOR’S MESSAGE H2 >
THE CITY OF GUELPH DIDN’T HOLD BACK IN THEIR STATEMENT. P >
“THIS PAST WEEKEND SAW AN UNACCEPTABLE LEVEL OF DISRUPTION , UNSAFE BEHAVIOUR AND INCIDENTS THAT EXCEEDED WHAT WE’VE EXPERIENCED IN PREVIOUS YEARS,” THEIR STATEMENT SAID. ADDING THAT “THIS BEHAVIOUR HAS NO PLACE IN OUR COMMUNITY.”
CAM GUTHRIE, GUELPH’S MAYOR SHARED HIS REACTION IN A VIDEO POSTED TO SOCIAL MEDIA. P >
“WHAT I SAW AND WHAT I’VE HEARD IS NOT GOOD. AND I’M PRETTY TICKED ABOUT THAT,”HE SAID.“I AM BEYOND UPSET SEEING VIDEOS OF OUR EMERGENCY SERVICES (RESPONDERS) GETTING BOTTLES THROWN AT THEM.. I HAVE HEARD FROM BUSINESSES THAT HAD THEIR WINDOWS SMASHED OUT.. THEN THERE’S THE GARBAGE AND LIGHTING OF FIRES.” P >
GUTHRIE MENTIONED HE’D ADDRESSED THE ISSUE WITH OTHER MAYORS WHO’VE DEALT WITH UNSANCTIONED STREET PARTIES AS WELL AS THE UNIVERSITY. BUT SO FAR THESE DISCUSSIONS HAVEN’T LED ANYWHERE, HESaid. P >HOME COMING HOCO GUELPH BROKEN BICYCLE LEFT BEHIND AFTER AN UNSANCTIONED HOME COMING STREET PARTY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH ON SEPT.27 ,2026.( ROWEN FISLER /)
THE MAYOR ALSO HAD A MESSAGE FOR STUDENTS.
“THERE’S A LOT OF MATURING THAT I THINK NEEDS TO OCCUR HERE”, GUTHRIE SAID.
STUDENTS ‘HAD A BLAST’ h2 >
ELFA RSE DESCRIBED THE DAY AS CRAZ Y, BUT MEMORABLE.
SURE, SOME STUFF GOT OUT OF HAND, BUT IT WAS AWESOME,“HE SAID.”WHEN ASKED IF THIS YEAR’S STREET PARTY CROSSED THE LINE, RUTLEDGE ANSWERED:“100 PER CENT.” p>GUELPH HOCO SIGN NEAR CHANCELLOR’S WAY IN GUELPH, O NT., ON SEPT.27 ,2026.(ROWEN FISLER/)
“I FEEL LIKE IT’S GOING TO GET CROSSED EVERY TIME,”HE CONTINUED.”PEOPLE ARE JUST GOING TO CAUSE CHAOS. NO MATTER WHAT. THEY THINK THAT’S FUN.” p>
THEN ASKED RUTLEDGE ABOUT HIS OVERALL”HOC O EXPERIENCE.”HARDD BLAST, MAN,”HE STATED. p >‘THIS CANNOT HAPPEN AGAIN’ h22>The SCHOOL’S PRESIDENT AND VICE CHANCELLOR DIDN’T HOLD BACK EITHER. IN A STATEMENT RELEASED MONDAY, RENE VAN ACKER STATED THE CELEBRATION POSED A SERIOUS RISK TO STUDENT SAFETY AND WELFARE ALONG WITH NEIGHBORS AND THE LARGER COMMUNITY. IT READ PARTLY,“THE UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH IS DEEPLY DISAPPOINTED BY WHAT OCCURRED,. AND WE ARE CLEAR THIS CANNOT HAPPEN AGAIN.” p >“VAN ACKER ALSO NOT ED IT WILL TAKE COORDINATED EFFORTS AND A NEW APPROACH TO STOP FUTURE UNSANCTIONED PARTIES”.
“WE WILL WORK CLOSELY WITH OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS TO REVIEW WHAT OCCURRED ASSESS WHERE CHANGE IS NEEDED PLUS IDENTIFY ADDITIONAL MEASURES REQUIRED TO PREVENT SIMILAR INCIDENTS REDUCE RISKS BETTER SUPPORT COMMUNITY SAFETY,”THE STATEM ENT CONTINU ED.” p >VAN ACK ER THEN POINT ED OUT“A CONCERN ING TREND” WHERE NON-STUDENTS, L IK E ELFARSE, WERE PARTICIPATING IN UNSANCTIONE D EVENTS. SEE CLAIM THEY WERE AMONG THOSE INVOLVED IN PROPERTY DAMAGE &OTHER DISRUPTIVE ACTIONS. SOME UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ALSO CONTRIBUTED, THE NOT ICES: br><po-class="”/ We will take action where individuals are found violating university policies or laws.. po-class="">““THANK YOU STUDENTS WHO ACT RESPONSIBLY & HELP CLEAN UP SUNDAY MORNING”, WRITTEN BY VAN ACK ER. ““
WE PLAN EXTENSIVE PLANN ING/COLLAB ORATION WITH CAMPUS&COMMUNITY PARTNERS THROUGHOUT YEAR FOR SAFE HOME COM ING WEEKEND FOR STAFF/STUD ENTS. ALUMNI&NEIGHBORS.”IT SHALL INCLUDE ONGOING COMMUNICATION& EDUCATION FROM START TERM WELCOME REFLECT VALUES UNIVERCITY. WE INTEND BUILD THIS PARTNERSHIP &STRENGTHEN PLANN ING SO MITIGATION MEASURES ALIGN BETTER W/LEVEL RISK OFFER..”<h3 cl ass=b article body __hh HOW DOES IT COMPARE? h3><PO cla ss=< c para graph Content not i ng Ho me coming weeken d supposed celebrati ons overshadowed event.
20 year NO major incidents reported during Home coming YEAR !. over 10 K peoples filled streets height pa rty.. 80 tickets issued under liquor license act by pol ice service.. By law officer requested assistance for over eighty noise complaints throughout city… — In this case use **HTML Markdown** formatting since markdown provides great readability; here’s what you do: #### Heading: Use `#` followed by your text; e. g., `# Your Title Here` #### Subheading: Use `##` followed by your text; e. g., `## Your Subtitle Here` #### Bold Text: Use `**` before & after your text; e. g., `**Your bold text here**` ### List Items: Use `*` before your item. ### Links: Create links using `[text](url)` format. Here is how these items should look: “`markdown # Your Title Here ## Your Subtitle Here Some introductory sentence. * Item One * Item Two “` Remember always maintain proper structure! And finally remember any links must remain unchanged as per original instruction.
