Discoveries of human feet on British Columbia beaches, 2007–2008

Since August 2007, five disarticulated (i.e. legless) human feet have been discovered in coastal British Columbia: one left foot and four right feet. A right foot was also discovered on a beach in Washington. As of August 2008, only one of the feet has been identified. It is not known to whom the rest of the feet belong, nor even if the occurrences are related. In addition, a hoax foot was planted on Vancouver Island.

Discoveries

The first foot was discovered on August 20 2007 on Jedediah Island, by a girl visiting from Washington.cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2007/08/31/bc-feet.html|title=Discovery of unattached human feet baffles B.C. police|date=2007-08-31|publisher=CBC News|accessdate=2008-06-18] The girl found the foot when she picked up a shoe and opened the sock, finding the foot.cite news|date=2007-08-31|publisher=Vancouver Sun|author=Sunny Freeman|page=A1|title=Two large right feet found on Georgia Strait beaches; 'Finding one foot is like a million to one odds, but to find two is crazy' RCMP corporal's 'best guess is that they are from missing persons';] The foot was that of a man, and was found wearing a size 12 Adidas shoe and a sock. It is thought to have become disarticulated due to decay. This kind of shoe was produced in 2003 and distributed mainly in India. The identity of the owner of this foot has been discovered by Vancouver police, but has been withheld on request of the man's family.

The second foot was discovered by a couple on August 26 on Gabriola Island. It was also that of a man, and also became disarticulated due to decay. It was waterlogged and appeared to have been taken ashore by an animal. It probably floated ashore from the south. This shoe was produced in 2004 and sold worldwide, and the type has since discontinued.

The third foot was discovered on February 8 2008, on Valdes Island.cite news|page=A3|publisher=Vancouver Province|date=2008-02-15|title=Human right foot found on Valdes; This is the third foot to wash up on a Gulf Island within a year;] It was also a man's right foot and was wearing a sneaker and a sock.cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/02/15/bc-third-right-foot.html|title=Another mysterious right foot floats ashore in Gulf Islands|date=2008-02-15|publisher=CBC News|accessdate=2008-05-18] This shoe was sold in Canada or the United States between February 1, 2003 to June 30, 2003.

The fourth foot was discovered on May 22 on Kirkland Island, an island in the Fraser Delta between Richmond and Delta, British Columbia. It was also wearing a sock and sneaker.cite news|accessdate=2008-06-18|title=Fourth right foot washes up near Vancouver, RCMP confirm|publisher=CBC News|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/05/22/bc-severed-foot-richmond.html|date=2008-05-24] It is thought to have washed down the Fraser River, having nothing to do with the ones found in the Gulf Islands.cite news|publisher=Vancouver Sun|date=2008-05-26|title=Latest washed-up foot likely a woman's, says finder|page=A7|author=Judith Lavoie] This right foot was of a woman.cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/16/bc-fifth-foot-found.html|date=2008-06-17|accessdate=2008-06-18|title=5th foot found on B.C.'s south coast|publisher=CBC News] The shoe was manufactured in 1999.

The fifth foot was on June 16, floating in water near Westham Island, part of Delta. It was found floating in the water by two hikers.cite news|title=Fifth human foot -- with shoe -- found floating; Two most recent finds in Fraser delta, other three off Gulf Islands|date=2008-06-17|page=A3|publisher=Vancouver Province|author=David Carrigg] So far, it is the only left foot to be found. It has been confirmed that the left foot found on June 16 on Westham Island and the right foot found February 8 on Valdes Island belonged to the same man. cite news|http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/458028|date=2008-07-10|accessdate=2008-07-10|title=Two mystery feet from same person, B.C. police say|publisher=Toronto Star|url = http://www.thestar.com/article/458028|author=Petti Fong] cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/07/10/bc-missing-feet-shoes-identified.html|title=No evidence 5 feet were severed, say B.C. RCMP|date=2008-07-10|accessdate=2008-07-10|publisher=CBC News]

Another foot was discovered on August 1, 2008, by a camper on a beach near Pysht, Washington. It was covered in seaweed. The site of the discovery was less than 16 kilometers from the international border in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Testing confirmed that the right foot was human. Police say the large black-top, size 11 athletic shoe for a right foot contains bones and flesh. This was the first foot of the series to be found outside of British Columbia. The RCMP and Clallam County Sheriff's Department agreed on August 5 that the foot could have been carried south from Canadian waters.cite news|url=http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20080803/BC_missing_foot_080803/20080803?hub=BritishColumbiaHome|date=2008-08-03|accessdate=2008-08-03|title=Missing foot mystery deepens with latest find|publisher=CTV News British Columbia] cite news|publisher=Vancouver Sun|date=2008-08-06|page=a6|title=Foot found in U.S. may be from Canada|author=Paige Dickerson, Peninsula Daily News]

ixth foot hoax

The sixth "foot", which was discovered on June 18 2008 on Tyee Spit near Campbell River on Vancouver Island,cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/18/bc-sixth-foot-found.html|date=2008-06-18|accessdate=2008-06-18|title=6th foot found on B.C. south coast|publisher=CBC News] was a hoax.cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/06/19/canada.feet/index.html|date=2008-06-18|accessdate=2008-06-18|title=Latest floating 'foot' turns out to be a hoax|publisher=CNN] The hoax was a "skeletonized animal paw" which was put in a sock and shoe and then stuffed with dried seaweed. The hoax has been called "senseless and thoughtless", "despicable", and "reprehensible". The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have begun an investigation into the hoax, and an arrest could result in charges of public mischief.cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/19/bc-foot-no-human.html|date=2008-06-18|accessdate=2008-06-18|title='Foot' hoax on B.C. south coast despicable: police|publisher=CBC News]

Theories

The series of discoveries has been called "astounding" and "almost beyond explanation", since there should be parts of four bodies that have not turned up.cite news|title=A fourth foot deepens the mystery; The severed-feet explanation is 'beyond imagination,' expert says after latest find|date=2008-05-24|page=B1|author=Gary Bellett|publisher=Vancouver Sun Original article wrote five bodies, but two of the feet has since been confirmed that they belong to same person.] The discoveries have caused speculation that the feet may be those of people who died in a boating accident or a plane crash in the ocean. One explanation is that some of the feet are those of four men who died in a plane crash near Quadra Island in 2005 and whose bodies have not been recovered. Foul play has also been suggested,cite news|title=Fourth foot fuels flotsam frenzy; Still no clues after boater's discovery in Richmond|author=Cheryl Chan|date=2008-05-23|page=A4] although none of the first four feet contained evidence of tool marks.

Determining the origin of the feet is complicated because ocean currents may carry floating items long distances,cite news|title=Mysterious feet may be linked to single accident: B.C. forensic expert|date=2008-06-17|accessdate=2008-06-18|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/17/bc-forensic-feet-connection.html|publisher=CBC News] and because currents in the Strait of Georgia may be unpredictable. A foot may float as far as convert|1000|mi|km. Also, human feet have a tendency to become adipocere (a soap-like substance formed from body fat), which makes it hard for forensic scientists to find clues. Under optimal conditions, a human body may survive in water for as long as three decades, meaning that the feet may have been floating around for years.cite news|date=2005-05-25|page=A9|title=Families of victims seek expert's help|author=Carolyn Heiman|publisher=Vancouver Province]

Thus far, although DNA profiles have been completed for the first three feet, testing revealed no matches to known missing persons.cite news|title=Are washed-up feet linked to brother's search?; Kevin Decock continues to hunt for the bodies of his two siblings who died in a plane crash|date=2008-05-25|page=A8|publisher=Vancouver Province|author=Cheryl Chan]

Level of rarity

Finding human remains on a beach is not necessarily uncommon. Storms may erode old burial sites and wash the debris out to sea where it is subsequently found, although this in particular would mainly reveal bones. In addition, missing people are a fact of life, and people fall off vessels at sea on occasion. Decomposition may separate the foot from the body because the ankle is relatively weak, and the buoyancy caused by air either inside or trapped within a shoe would allow it to float away. According to SFU entomologist Gail Anderson, extremities such as the hands, feet, and head often detach as a body decomposes in the water, although they rarely float.

However, finding feet and not the rest of the bodies has been called unusual. Finding two feet has been given "million to one odds" and "an anomaly". The finding of the third foot made it the first time three such discoveries had been made so close to each other. The fourth discovery caused speculation about human interference and, statistically, was called "curious".

References

External links

* [http://www.cbc.ca/bc/features/found-feet/ Interactive map of discoveries] from CBC News