Okanagan Connector: Icy conditions, crashes led to temporary overnight closure

The Okanagan Connector underwent a temporary overnight closure due to multiple crashes stemming from terrible road conditions.

DriveBC said the highway was closed westbound between Brenda Mine Road and Pennask Summit due to a vehicle incident on Thursday night around 10 p.m.

Two hours later, the highway was reported closed and no detours were available.

Police told Global News they were closing the highway due to accidents and road conditions.

The Connector reopened around 2 a..m., but motorists were told to expect major delays.

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

1:51 Alberta spending $1.9 billion on major highway and bridge projects

On social media, some people reported very icy conditions near the summit, which has an elevation of 1,717 metres. A weather report from DriveBC said the area received 10 centimetres of snow during the past 12 hours.

One motorist, who commutes between the Okanagan and the Lower Mainland, told Global News that conditions were the worst he’d ever seen, saying the summit was a complete sheet of ice.

Conditions at the summit were improved as of 9 a.m. Friday, with blacktop showing, no snow and a temperature of -2.7 C.

Winter tires or chains are required when travelling over mountain passes from Oct. 1 to April 30.

More information about that rule is available online.