Winter blasts contribute to rash of crashes in B.C.: police
Treacherous road conditions might have played a part in a fatal crash in Delta, B.C., Wednesday morning, police said.
A passenger in a car was killed after the vehicle slid sideways into oncoming traffic in the 8000 block of Nordel Way, Delta police said.
"The vehicle was struck on the passenger side by an eastbound vehicle," Const. Sharlene Brooks said in a news release.
"The passenger, a male in his 50s, subsequently died at the scene. It is not believed that anyone else was injured in the collision."
A 56-year-old man died in hospital in Vancouver following a downtown collision in the 600 block of Davie Street on Tuesday morning, city police said Wednesday.
The driver of a mini-van veered across the street, and his vehicle slammed into the side of a Coast Mountain community bus that was loading passengers, Const. Jana McGuinness said.
"The man was transported to hospital but died a short time later. There is no indication that weather was a factor in this accident," McGuinness said.
Tow truck driver flees
Another collision occurred at about 8 p.m. Tuesday in the northbound lanes of the King George Highway near the south end of the Pattullo Bridge in Surrey.
A small sedan rear-ended a tow truck. The male driver and female passenger of the sedan were taken to hospital and treated with non-life-threatening injuries, Surrey RCMP said Wednesday.
The tow truck driver fled the scene on foot before police arrived.
"Police are asking the public's assistance in identifying the male tow truck operator, who was described by witnesses as being a Caucasian adult male," Cpl. Don Loeppky said a news release.
Investigators are looking into speed and alcohol, and the lack of seat-belt use, as possible causes of the crash, Loeppky said.
Meanwhile, the person who died in Tuesday's single-vehicle crash on the Coquihalla Highway, about half a kilometre between Hope and Merritt in southern B.C., has been identified as a 37-year-old man from Chilliwack, the RCMP said Wednesday.
Const. Lea-Anne Dunlop said the man was the driver of the newer model Ford pickup truck, but his name is not being released. Six other occupants were taken to hospital for treatment and have since been released.
The southbound truck was heading to the Lower Mainland when it went off the highway and hit the median embankment.
"It does appear that speed relative to the road conditions is a contributing factor in this collision," Dunlop said in a news release.
Police are reminding motorists not to drink and drive during the holiday season, and to exercise extra caution when driving in winter road conditions.