The BC Coroners Service has released the results of investigations into two motor vehicle crashes in the Okanagan that claimed four lives.
Drunk driving and speed were factors in both.
The first crash happened in October 2012 on a forest service road west of Peachland. Michael Grant Baxter, 20, lost control of his pickup truck at a slight curve while travelling at least 85 kmh.
It rolled 40 metres down the road.
Baxter and a passenger, Delanie Marie Smith,17, were both killed.
Baxter was heavily intoxicated by alcohol and had also been smoking marijuana.
His pickup had been raised with a lift kit and had oversized wheels.
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The coroner says both modifications raised the vehicle’s centre of mass, potentially increasing instability.
The other crash happened in May in Kelowna.
David Robert Potts, 32, was driving his Harley Davidson motorcycle on Glenmore Road when he slammed into the side of a car that turned left in front of him.
Potts and the driver of the car, Desiree Janette MacPherson, 25, died at the scene.
A passenger in the car was seriously injured.
An RCMP traffic analyst determined the motorcycle was going between 165 and 198 kmh.
Potts was not wearing an approved helmet.
He died of head injuries.
His blood alcohol level was .25% which is considered a heavy level of drunkenness.
MacPherson was found to be moderately impaired by alcohol and toxicology tests found the presence of cocaine.
Both crashes are classified as accidental and the coroner made no recommendations in either.
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