Charges are pending against five University of British Columbia engineering students after a Volkswagen fell from the Iron Workers Memorial Second Narrows Bridge during a botched attempt to suspend it under the span.

Shortly after 4 a.m. PT Monday, police were called to the Vancouver side of the bridge, which connects Vancouver with the North Shore.

Students had been attempting to hang the vehicle under the bridge when the rope or cabling they were using failed and the vehicle plunged into the Burrard Inlet, said Vancouver Police Const. Lindsey Houghton.

No one was injured, but five students were arrested and released with a court appearance notice, said Houghton. Police will recommend charges of mischief over $5,000, she said.

Engineering students have been hanging the hollowed-out shells of Volkswagen Beetles from Vancouver bridges since about 1981 to mark the start of Engineering Week at the university.

Houghton said this is the first time anyone has been arrested.

"What's unique about this situation is that when they were lowering the shell of the Volkswagen off the side, they realized they may be damaging the important cables that are underneath the bridge, on the side of the bridge, and that's why the prank — if you want to call it that — went awry," Houghton said.

Eight years ago, students suspended a Volkswagen off the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.