Just hours after it reopened from a two-day wildfire-driven closure, B.C.’s Coquihalla Highway was closed again — this time due to a semi-truck on fire south of Merritt.
DriveBC said the incident was between Coldwater Road and Exit 286/ Merritt-97 C.
There was no projected time for the route to reopen, and drivers are being warned of major delays due to congestion.
DriveBC’s next update is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Friday.
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The critical link between the Lower Mainland and the Southern Interior was initially closed on Wednesday due to the Mine Creek wildfire burning on both sides of the highway.
That closure ended earlier Friday, but Drive BC said due to the wildfire remaining in the area, no stopping is allowed along the Coquihalla between Hope and Merritt.
Drivers are warned that the highway could also close at any time if the wildfire burns close to the highway again.
The province’s southwest has been facing major traffic issues between the Lower Mainland and the Southern Interior after Highway 1 was closed on Friday morning due to a serious crash, leaving Highway 3 as the only option.
Highway 1 has since reopened to single-lane alternating traffic.
The Mine Creek wildfire is mapped at 1,900 hectares and is still considered out of control.
There are still two evacuation orders and two evacuation alerts associated with this fire.
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