NEAR PEACHLAND – First one driver hit the ditch, then nearby and soon afterwards, another motorist lost control and spun off the highway.
That’s what happened Monday morning on the Coquihalla Connector near Brenda Mine west of Peachland.
“We went out of whack about 500 feet down there then straightened out. I slowed to 85, got to here, and she (my vehicle) seemed to like the snow more than the road,” says Les Rae as he waited for a tow truck to remove his pickup from the snow-filled median.
His passenger says the road was like a skating rink. “You couldn’t stand on it. You’d just slide down the road. Then the sun came out and the plow truck came by two or three times and put sand down but you can still go down the road and slide,” says Leonard White.
The two men were not hurt in the crash. However, a woman driving a S-U-V that also hit the ditch in the same area complained her seat belt strap hurt her neck.
RCMP say road conditions on the Connector can change very quickly from good to bad. And it seems sunny skies can lull some drivers into a false sense of security.
“It was quite sunny when I got here and I think that can be deceiving for most people. They see the sun and think the road is bare but of course it’s still freezing up here so the road is icy,” says Cst. Mack McCall.
While some crashes are inevitable, police say drivers on the Connector in the winter months should ease off the gas pedal.
“Yeah, absolutely, always a good thing.” says McCall.
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