More than two dozen people were taken to hospital after a crash involving two buses, two semi-trailers and two vehicles on the Coquihalla Highway north of Hope, B.C., on Sunday night.
Responders worked for hours to free people trapped in vehicles.
The highway was closed in both directions between Hope and Merritt after the crash about 8 p.m. PT Sunday. Northbound lanes were reopened shortly before 2 a.m. Monday.
B.C. Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) confirmed the vehicles involved in the accident. It said it sent 22 ground and air ambulances to the scene.
Twenty-nine patients were taken to hospital with injuries ranging from stable to critical. Another 136 people who weren't injured were taken to a warming centre in Hope.
BCEHS said the collision occurred about 25 kilometres north of Hope. DriveBC put the location near Exit 183 or Othello Road.
Earlier in the day, B.C.'s Ministry of Transportation had warned drivers to be cautious on the stretch of Highway 5 between Hope and Merritt due to limited visibility, although it hasn't been determined if visibility issues played a role in the crash.
Graham Zillwood lives on Othello Road about 100 metres from the location of the crash. He said he was watching television when heard a loud crunching noise.
"It sounded like a vehicle hit a tree, so I quickly got up and I grabbed my phone," he said. "I knew someone was probably off the highway."
As Zillwood dialled 911, he said, he saw a transport truck come down the roadway, fail to stop and then hit a vehicle, which was knocked down the embankment.
He said the transport truck then rolled down the embankment and landed on top of the vehicle.
"Then another semi came and went down the embankment," he said in describing the multi-vehicle pile-up.
source : http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/29-injured-in-multi-vehicle-crash-on-coquihalla-highway-1.4551656
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| Twenty-nine people were taken to hospital after a crash involving two buses, two transport trucks and two passenger vehicles on B.C.'s Coquihalla Highway on Sunday evening. (Shane Mackichan) |
Responders worked for hours to free people trapped in vehicles.
The highway was closed in both directions between Hope and Merritt after the crash about 8 p.m. PT Sunday. Northbound lanes were reopened shortly before 2 a.m. Monday.
B.C. Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) confirmed the vehicles involved in the accident. It said it sent 22 ground and air ambulances to the scene.
Twenty-nine patients were taken to hospital with injuries ranging from stable to critical. Another 136 people who weren't injured were taken to a warming centre in Hope.
BCEHS said the collision occurred about 25 kilometres north of Hope. DriveBC put the location near Exit 183 or Othello Road.
Earlier in the day, B.C.'s Ministry of Transportation had warned drivers to be cautious on the stretch of Highway 5 between Hope and Merritt due to limited visibility, although it hasn't been determined if visibility issues played a role in the crash.
Graham Zillwood lives on Othello Road about 100 metres from the location of the crash. He said he was watching television when heard a loud crunching noise.
"It sounded like a vehicle hit a tree, so I quickly got up and I grabbed my phone," he said. "I knew someone was probably off the highway."
As Zillwood dialled 911, he said, he saw a transport truck come down the roadway, fail to stop and then hit a vehicle, which was knocked down the embankment.
He said the transport truck then rolled down the embankment and landed on top of the vehicle.
"Then another semi came and went down the embankment," he said in describing the multi-vehicle pile-up.
source : http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/29-injured-in-multi-vehicle-crash-on-coquihalla-highway-1.4551656
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