'Severed foot' found in Powell River was not human

By Cheryl Chan, The Province
March 7, 2011 9:52 AM

The ‘severed foot’ that apparently washed ashore on a B.C. beach Saturday wasn’t human and wasn’t a foot.

A woman out for a walk on the beach in Powell River Saturday stumbled across the discovery of what looked like human remains encased in a running shoe — similar to seven mysterious cases that have washed up on various B.C. shores in recent years.

But after the news broke yesterday about the discovery, RCMP received a call from a Powell River man who said he knew where that ‘foot’ came from.

“He said he had been walking on the beach with his dog,” said RCMP spokeswoman Cpl. Annie Linteau.

During that January walk, the dog kept chewing on a piece of a bone, the man told police.

“So he took the bone from the dog to make him stop chewing on it, and he put the bone inside a shoe that has been discarded on the beach,” said Linteau.

Police informed the B.C. Coroner’s Service. The bone was later determined to be from an animal, likely a seal.

In all, 10 feet have been found in B.C. and Washington since August 2007, including on Whidbey Island and on a Richmond beach.

The most recent discovery was last December in Tacoma, Washington. Tacoma police said the Size 6 Ozark Trail brand hiking boot likely belonged to a youth or small adult.

Experts say feet encased in shoes can float great distances, and shoes and socks keep feet from decomposing, while other body parts could easily become separated through exposure to the elements or marine life.

The severed limbs last hit headlines in January, when a man on Vancouver Island alerted police after he found what he thought was a human hand.

Forensic experts confirmed the remains actually belonged to an animal.

http://www.theprovince.com/Severed+foot+found+Powell+River+human/4393114/story.html