A man in his 40s from the South Okanagan and his dog were killed in that major crash on the Coquihalla, north of Hope, near the Othello Road exit yesterday morning.
Police are continuing to investigate but they estimate that approximately 50 people were involved in this crash that began with a report of a semi truck that was stopped in the northbound lanes of Highway 5 in the S-curves.
“An officer from Fraser Valley Traffic Services responded and came upon the scene to find that during the time it took him to get there, a pickup truck had collided into the rear of stopped semi truck,” a statement from police said. “The road conditions in the area of the collision were treacherous and caught many unaware which resulted in a cascading, chain-reaction collision involving at least two dozen vehicles, including passenger vehicles, semi trucks, and a bus.”
Police say that officer’s vehicle was hit by a jack-knifed semi that was unable to stop. A number of rescue vehicles were also involved in minor crashes as they arrived at the scene.
The man killed was driving the pickup truck that hit the initial semi that was stopped on the highway. Investigators are reviewing a ‘significant amount’ of dash camera footage but at this time, no criminal charges are anticipated.
BC RCMP Traffic Services spokesperson, Cpl. Mike Halskov says while five other people were taken to hospital with significant injuries, only one is still in hospital with broken bones. This person is expected to recover.
“Of the remaining people involved, injuries ranged from minor to non-life threatening or requiring no medical intervention,” Halskov said.
The highway opened to traffic just before 10 p.m. last night, and police say severe road and weather conditions were a key factor in the crash.
“Speed relative to conditions also played a factor, and police would like to remind motorists to drive according to the road and weather conditions,” Halskov added. “In this collision, slower speeds may not have prevented collisions due to the highway being glare ice, but slower speeds may have reduced injury.”
