Flipped cars, dozens of crashes as snowfall snarls Fraser Valley traffic
Flipped cars, dozens of crashes as snowfall snarls Fraser Valley traffic
A blast of winter weather made for a messy commute in the Lower Mainland Tuesday morning.
An unexpected snowfall meant slippery roads and highways, sending vehicles spinning out of control and backing up traffic for hours.
Along Highway 1 through Abbotsford, several vehicles could be seen in the ditches or flipped over in the median.
But the side roads also proved challenging.
In Chilliwack, one person died and another was airlifted to hospital after a single-vehicle crash. While police did not directly blame the elements for the crash, they did say their initial investigation suggests the vehicle “lost traction” and rolled down a 300-metre embankment.
A five-vehicle chain reaction accident in Langley sent one car into the porch of a home.
“I suspect what happened was there’s a minor, rear-end MVA and the vehicle into the house swerved to miss it and obviously couldn’t stop in time…and then other vehicles coming down the hill crashed into the ones already stopped on the hill,” said Doug Simpson, a platoon captain with Langley Township Fire Department.
“The roads are very slippery everywhere. I think because the snow is so wet. As soon as there’s vehicles driving, it turns to ice with the temperatures,” he explained.
In Langley Township and Abbotsford, emergency services responded to about two dozen calls for snow-related accidents.
Bruce Ferguson, Langley’s acting fire chief is reminding motorists to adjust their driving to the road conditions.
“Slow down. Don’t’ be in a hurry. If you don’t have to go out, maybe stay home until the roads are cleared up,” he said.
Another accident in Langley saw a semi-truck veer off the road in the 6600 block of 264th Street.
“My truck got out of control and skid all the way into the (power) pole,” said trucker Shahzad Rasheed, who said the accident happened as he tried to pulled over to allow more room for a vehicle driving toward him.
“Every driver on the road should be looking to drive carefully,” he said.
Mainroad Contracting, in a statement, says crews will be out on the region's roads salting and brining in preparation for an anticipated two centimetres of wet snow overnight. Lane closures will also be in effect on the Port Mann and Alex Fraser bridges while crews work to prepare the crossings for more snow.
Motorists are being reminded to check DriveBC for up-to-date information on closures or other issues, and to make sure their vehicles are prepared to handle winter conditions.
The parents of young Ontario hockey player Ben Teague have been searching for answers since he died while at a team retreat in 2019. The mystery about what happened and the code of silence in hockey culture is explored in CTV W5's 'What Happened to Ben,' on CTVNews.ca and W5's official YouTube channel.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's calls for protests ahead of his anticipated indictment in New York have generated mostly muted reactions from supporters, with even some of his most ardent loyalists dismissing the idea as a waste of time or a law enforcement trap.
In an effort to keep the foreign interference story at the forefront, and to do an apparent endrun around the Liberal filibuster blocking one study from going ahead, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is forcing MPs to debate and then vote on a motion instructing an opposition-dominated House committee to strike its own review.
Officials are still looking for victims after a fire ripped through a building in Old Montreal last week, killing at least one person. At a press conference Monday morning, spokespersons for the Montreal police and Montreal fire department said six people are still missing. They come from various locations in Quebec, Ontario and the U.S.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
Chinese leader Xi Jinping is due to meet with Vladimir Putin in a political boost for the isolated Russian president after the International Criminal Court charged him with war crimes in Ukraine.
Even at one of the tallest natural peaks on Earth, humans have left their mark in a trail of bacteria as researchers have found germs from coughing and sneezing that have been potentially preserved for centuries on Mount Everest.
Mounties in Port McNeill violated a suspect's Charter rights by failing to allow him to contact a lawyer promptly after his 2019 drug trafficking arrest, a judge has ruled.
The Town of Strathmore and Siksika Nation hosted the first Lead By Example Powwow this weekend in honour of a young Indigenous man who was shot to death four years ago.
Autopsies confirmed gunshot wounds as the cause of death for two constables responding to a domestic dispute Thursday, the Edmonton Police Service says.
Autopsies confirmed gunshot wounds as the cause of death for two constables responding to a domestic dispute Thursday, the Edmonton Police Service says.
March 20 marks the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere, and, after a long, grey winter, Torontonians can soon look forward to warmer temperatures and sunnier days.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
Officials are still looking for victims after a fire ripped through a building in Old Montreal last week, killing at least one person. At a press conference Monday morning, spokespersons for the Montreal police and Montreal fire department said six people are still missing. They come from various locations in Quebec, Ontario and the U.S.
Two families were displaced early Monday morning after a fire ripped through a building in Montreal's Quartier Latin. No one was injured, according to the Montreal fire department (SIM).
One person has been confirmed dead and six people remain missing as police continue to search for victims after a fire swept through a building in Old Montreal on Thursday.
Travel nurses go from place to place, all over the world, filling in wherever help is needed. To assist with current shortages, some are in Saskatchewan.
Pile O Bones hosted their 18th annual tattoo convention at the Turvey Centre on the weekend where artists from around the country were able to highlight their talent.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
The University of Prince Edward Island Faculty Association says its staff has gone on strike after what it says are failed attempts to enter additional negotiations with the university's administration.
The student union president at Cape Breton University said food insecurity has become a concern for many students and the on-campus food bank cannot keep up with demand.
The University of Prince Edward Island coach is defending the team’s actions, after the University of Alberta team skated off the ice without handshakes at the U Sports Men’s Hockey National Championship in Charlottetown.
Lane restrictions are now in place on Wellington Street as construction gets underway on Phase 1 of the Wellington Gateway and Municipal Infrastructure Improvements project.
The first day of spring in the London region will be a beautiful one. The daytime high is forecast to be 6 C, slightly warmer than the average high for this time of year.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
A community is in mourning after a 10-year-old girl was killed earlier this week when flames tore through her family’s camping trailer southeast of Brantford.
St. Patrick's day street parties in Waterloo, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau making an announcement in Guelph, and a woman charged with defrauding doulas round out the most-read stories of the week.
