New Delhi, April 7 -- Authorities in British Columbia urged people to stay away from a rock face above a highway in the Canadian province where a red Volkswagen Beetle shell was suspended in an apparent prank by engineering students.

BC Parks was working to remove the Beetle and expects to do so within the week, the province's Environment Ministry said in a statement Monday. It said the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and park rangers have been asked to investigate.

The car shell appeared on the rock face above Highway 99 in Squamish, British Columbia, last week with a large "E" on its roof, indicating University of British Columbia engineering students were carrying on a tradition of placing Beetle shells in difficult locations.

In 2009...