Skip to content

UPDATE: 10 hospitalized after two separate accidents close Coquihalla Highway

Interior Health says those involved suffering from varying degrees of injuries.
77264BCLN2007coquihalla-icebirds8-twitter

The Coquihalla is closed 10 kilometres south of Merritt after two separate crashes late Sunday afternoon.

Interior Health confirms that 10 people were taken to hospital by ground transport, with five being treated at Nicola Valley Hospital in Merritt, and the other five transported to Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops.

Officials say the victims suffered varying degrees of injuries, but the severity of these injuries is unknown at this time.

A truck driver who drove through the aftermath of the accidents said the accident northbound looked to have involved a police cruiser and multiple vehicles in the ditch.

Less than a kilometre north, another accident southbound had occurred.

He said a total of about ten cars were involved in both.

He also said there was about three inches of the snow on the ground, and it was still falling "steadily."

According to DriveBC, southbound traffic can detour at exit 286 while northbound traffic can detour in Hope. Drivers are encouraged to take Highway 3 or Highway 8 to Highway 1 if possible.

 

More to come.

 



About the Author: Ashley Wadhwani-Smith

I began my journalistic journey at Black Press Media as a community reporter in my hometown of Maple Ridge, B.C.
Read more