Air ambulance called to crash that gridlocked traffic near Qualicum Beach
First responders in the Oceanside area had a busy Wednesday, responding to four motor vehicle crashes within the space of a few short hours.
The most serious crash occurred shortly after 11 a.m. when a southbound car collided with the back end of a transport truck.
The impact severely damaged the front end of the car, requiring the driver to be extracted.
The crash occurred after 11 a.m. Wednesday. (CTV News)
"The highway was shut down for a short period of time while transport was arranged for the occupants by air ambulance. The other person was transported by ground ambulance to hospital," said Sgt. Shane Worth of the Oceanside RCMP.
"My understanding from the investigators on scene are that the injuries are not life-threatening," he said.
The crash occurred after 11 a.m. Wednesday. (CTV News)
Wesley Howerton was among those motorists stuck in a lineup that stretched for several kilometers waiting for the highway to reopen.
"It probably happened about a minute before we got here," he said. "I hope for the best for everyone involved."
The crash occurred after 11 a.m. Wednesday. (CTV News)
Three other crashes followed shortly afterwards, including one about a kilometre to the north of that serious rear-end. A sudden burst of bad weather is catching some of the blame.
"We did have a quick weather [event] up on the highway involving some snow and hail, which obviously seems to have caught some people off-guard, and that's likely a contributing factor in those crashes today," Worth said.
RCMP are reminding all drivers to slow down and use extra caution during poor conditions.
"The advice is just slow down, take your time and give yourself lots of room in front," said Worth.
"Always make sure that your vehicle is well maintained and your tires are good, your windshield wipers are working," he added.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Parents of infant who died in wrong-way crash on Ontario's Hwy. 401 were in same vehicle
Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit has released new details about a wrong-way collision in Whitby on Monday night that claimed the lives of four people.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
OPP's mandatory alcohol screening during traffic stops 'not acceptable': CCLA
A spike in impaired driving-related collisions has caused Ontario’s provincial police to begin enforcing mandatory alcohol screening (MAS) at all traffic stops in the Greater Toronto Area -- a move one civil rights group says is ‘not acceptable.’
Maple Leafs down Bruins 2-1 to force Game 7
William Nylander scored twice and Joseph Woll made 22 saves as the Toronto Maple Leafs downed the Boston Bruins 2-1 on Thursday to force Game 7 in their first-round series.
Jurors in Trump hush money trial hear recording of pivotal call on plan to buy affair story
Jurors in the hush money trial of Donald Trump heard a recording Thursday of him discussing with his then-lawyer and personal fixer a plan to purchase the silence of a Playboy model who has said she had an affair with the former president.
Southern Alberta store broken into by burly black bear
Staff at a small southern Alberta office supply store were shocked to find someone had broken into the business last week, but they were even more confused when they discovered the culprit was a bear.
Captain sentenced to 4 years for criminal negligence in fiery deaths of 34 aboard scuba boat
A federal judge on Thursday sentenced a scuba dive boat captain to four years in custody and three years supervised release for criminal negligence after 34 people died in a fire aboard the vessel.
New scam targets Canada Carbon Rebate recipients
Fake text message and email campaigns trying to get money and information out of unsuspecting Canadian taxpayers have started circulating, just months after the federal government rebranded the carbon tax rebate the Canada Carbon Rebate.