Close X
Sunday, December 15, 2024
ADVT 
National

3 Dead In Alleged Impaired Driving Crash On Sea-to-Sky Highway, Whistler Cycling Club 'Devastated'

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 01 Jun, 2015 09:45 AM
    PEMBERTON, B.C. — Three people are dead after a man, who police believe was impaired, drove into a group of cyclists out for a weekend ride northeast of Whistler, B.C.
     
    RCMP said they received a call from a witness about a driver crashing into three people cycling along Highway 99 around noon on Sunday, killing two of them, along with the vehicle's sole passenger.
     
    The condition of the third cyclist was unknown, said RCMP Staff Sgt. Steve LeClair.
     
    "The problem is the area is relatively remote with no cell phone coverage and spotty radio reception," he said. "We do have a collision-investigation team on scene, as well as our local members and the coroner."
     
    LeClair suggested reports the driver was impaired at the time of the crash were based on observations from witnesses and police officers at the scene.
     
    "I don't know what the particulars of that are but I suspect it's based on their observations and their experience," he said.
     
    One officer accompanied the driver as he was airlifted to a hospital in Vancouver.
     
    Ross Chafe and Kelly Blunden were identified as the two cyclists killed in the collision.
     
    The families of the two cyclists who were killed have been notified, said LeClair, but the identity of the deceased passenger has yet to be confirmed.
     
    No charges have been laid, however, police say the investigation is ongoing.
     
    The president of a Whistler, B.C., cycling club says two of three people killed in a weekend crash were active members of his group with a lot of experience on the road.
     
    Frank Savage of the Whistler Cycling Club says the group was apparently wheeling down a steep and challenging area when the accident happened.
     
    Savage says the two dead cyclists were prominent riders in the resort municipality and his group is devastated, however both he and police are withholding their identities.
     
    RCMP say the driver of the vehicle, who is now in a Vancouver hospital, appears to have been impaired during the crash, based on observations from witnesses and officers at the scene.
     
    Highway 99 was closed in both directions for nearly 10 hours on Sunday.
     
    Photo: CTV

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Incoming Alberta Premier Rachel Notley Suspends Rookie Over Photo

    Incoming Alberta Premier Rachel Notley Suspends Rookie Over Photo
    EDMONTON — Incoming Alberta NDP premier Rachel Notley has suspended a rookie member of her caucus over a social media photo deemed homophobic by the party.

    Incoming Alberta Premier Rachel Notley Suspends Rookie Over Photo

    Court Orders Feds To Turn Over Files On Leak About Former Terror Suspect

    Court Orders Feds To Turn Over Files On Leak About Former Terror Suspect
    A Canadian man the federal government once accused of terrorism has won a small victory in his ongoing legal battle for compensation for damaging leaks of government documents to the media.

    Court Orders Feds To Turn Over Files On Leak About Former Terror Suspect

    B.C. Man Gets 2.5 Years In Prison After Crash That Left Nurse With Spinal-Cord Injury

    B.C. Man Gets 2.5 Years In Prison After Crash That Left Nurse With Spinal-Cord Injury
    A 22-year-old B.C. man has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison for a hit-and-run crash that left a licensed practical nurse a quadriplegic.

    B.C. Man Gets 2.5 Years In Prison After Crash That Left Nurse With Spinal-Cord Injury

    $20-Million Fund To Help Sex Workers Get Out Of The Industry Is 'Over-Subscribed'

    $20-Million Fund To Help Sex Workers Get Out Of The Industry Is 'Over-Subscribed'
    There are more groups than money available for the government's proposed $20 million plan to get sex workers out of the industry, Justice Minister Peter MacKay said Friday.

    $20-Million Fund To Help Sex Workers Get Out Of The Industry Is 'Over-Subscribed'

    Yosef Gopaul Sentenced To 12 Years In Prison For Killing Surrey Hockey Mom; Says Sorry, Wants Rehab

    Yosef Gopaul Sentenced To 12 Years In Prison For Killing Surrey Hockey Mom; Says Sorry, Wants Rehab
     The family of a British Columbia woman whose motto was "money isn't worth dying for" wept as a 28-year-old man was sentenced for manslaughter after blindsiding her with a rock to the head outside a neighbourhood ice arena.

    Yosef Gopaul Sentenced To 12 Years In Prison For Killing Surrey Hockey Mom; Says Sorry, Wants Rehab

    Vancouver Aquarium Dolphin Hana In Critical Condition After Surgery

    One of two Pacific white-sided dolphins at the Vancouver Aquarium is in critical condition after groundbreaking emergency surgery for a gastrointestinal disorder.

    Vancouver Aquarium Dolphin Hana In Critical Condition After Surgery