No charges pending after official symbol of Canada nabbed in Nickelback’s hometown: Hanna RCMP

A beaver wandered into a small business in Hanna, Alberta last week, prompting a visit from the local RCMP detachment.

It was easily the most Canadian caper of the week.

No charges are pending in connection with a beaver reported to be trespassing at a small business in the central Alberta town of Hanna that’s also the hometown of some genuine Canadian rock and roll legends and a Stanley Cup-winning icon.

On Wednesday, Hanna RCMP say they were called to a local small business for reports of an intruder who refused to leave.

Upon arrival, officers say they discovered a disoriented beaver, approximately two feet tall and weighing around 40 pounds.

In a social media release, Hanna RCMP say an officer immediately set out to de-escalate the situation, which officers believe may have been related to a stack of firewood in the entrance that the confused intruder may or may not have had its eyes on to use as potential dam-building material.

The suspect eventually responded to coaxing from the officer and departed the premises.

Police say no arrest was required and the suspect was not detained.

In their social media post, Hanna RCMP included a photo of the suspect in case it turns up elsewhere in town.

The intruder is not considered a threat, officers said, although “his tail was pretty big.”

Hanna is about 218 kilometres northeast of Calgary. It’s best-known as the hometown of Canadian rock stars Nickelback -- and Calgary Flames NHL legend Lanny McDonald.

The beaver was named as the official symbol of Canada on March 24, 1975, when the National Symbols Act of Canada received royal assent, according to the Canadian Heritage website.

“This law aimed to showcase the beaver (castor canadensis) as one of the symbols of Canadian sovereignty,” Heritage Canada said.

The beaver was featured on the very first Canadian postage stamp, in 1851.

Nickelback was officially inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2023, in recognition of its global success.

Lanny McDonald helped lead the Calgary Flames to the Stanley Cup in 1989.