British Columbia

4-car crash at police road block sends man to hospital

One man was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after a four-car collision on the Pitt Meadows end of the Pitt River Bridge.

RCMP officers were conducting road stop at the end of Pitt River Bridge

First responders carry a man to a waiting ambulance on a stretcher after a four-car crash on the Pitt River Bridge. (Rafferty Baker/CBC)

One man was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after a four-car crash on the Pitt Meadows end of the Pitt River Bridge.

It happened a little after 1 a.m. Sunday, in the eastbound lanes. 

RCMP Cpl. Quentin Frewing says police were conducting a road stop on the bridge to check motorists for drugs and alcohol when he noticed something odd going on.

"There was a vehicle that pulled over and put their hazard lights on. I thought they were avoiding the road block, so I got in my police car and swung around and came roaring up here, and it turns out there was a collision," said Frewing.

Frewing said a driver struck a line of cars stopped for the road block, causing a rear-end chain reaction involving three other cars.

RCMP was conducting a road stop on the Pitt River Bridge when a motorist drove into a line of stopped cars. (Rafferty Baker/CBC)

"The driver, obviously, was not paying attention and rear ended the vehicle. It is possible they fell asleep," said Frewing. "I administered a roadside screening device and the driver was not impaired."

One man was taken to hospital after first responders carefully removed him from the first car that was struck.

Frewing said the patient was conscious, speaking and complaining about back pain. Paramedics kept him immobile and carefully loaded him onto a stretcher.

The other drivers were a little shaken up, but uninjured, according to Frewing.

Frewing said the driver accused of causing the crash was issued a ticket for driving without due care and attention.

Nobody suffered life-threatening injuries in the four-car crash. Police say the driver accused of causing the crash wasn't impaired, but may have fallen asleep. (Rafferty Baker/CBC)