Burnaby Mounties are investigating a fatal crash near Metrotown mall that closed a stretch of Kingsway during the Friday afternoon rush hour.
Authorities said as many as eight vehicles were involved in the collision, which happened near the Nelson Avenue intersection and left one person dead and two others in hospital.
“I heard the noise and it came just right away,” said witness Hassan Aghamohseni. “Everything happened in one second.”
Aghamohseni, who owns a flower shop on Kingsway, was sitting in the front seat of his parked delivery van when he saw a westbound car jump the median and crash into several moving vehicles in the eastbound lanes in front of him.
The wrong way car then carried on and hit several vehicles behind Aghamohseni – but his vehicle was spared.
“He hit three cars and he passed me and he was at the back of my car,” he said. “I think I was the only car he didn’t hit. He hit every car.”
The impact of the crash caused serious damage to at least three of the vehicles, including a black SUV and a silver pickup truck. The mangled wreckage of a silver car could be seen covered in a blue tarp in the aftermath of the accident.
Aghamohseni called 911 and began assisting injured drivers and passengers as they exited their vehicles.
“We brought some of them out with help from London Drugs people,” he said. “They helped a lot. They helped until police and firemen got here.”
The cause of the collision hasn't been confirmed, but police said they believe speed was a factor.
Police closed a stretch of Kingsway from Nelson to Marlborough Avenue for several hours while they investigated the crash.
Authorities asked anyone who witnessed the crash or has dash cam video of the scene to contact the Burnaby RCMP detachment at 604-646-9999.
This crash was the first of two fatal incidents in Burnaby on Friday in the span of just a few hours.
A second incident on Lougheed Highway between Madison and Gilmore avenues just before 9 p.m. killed a pedestrian and sent two other people to hospital.
