A serious crash on the Coquihalla Highway has left one person dead and hospitalized four others with serious injuries.
Emergency crews responded to the southbound lanes of the Coquihalla Highway 5, south of the Portia Brake Check, for reports of a serious single-vehicle rollover collision Saturday morning.
“First responders arrived on scene to find a heavily damaged grey Mazda CX-9 on its side,” stated Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey, with the BC RCMP.
“Two adults and two children sustained varying degrees of injuries, all serious and many considered to be potentially life-threatening in nature. While sadly a fifth occupant of the vehicle, a woman in her 70s, was pronounced deceased at the scene.”
Both adults were air-lifted by BC Emergency Health Services to separate BC Lower Mainland hospitals in serious condition and underwent emergency surgery.
One of the two children was transported to BC Children’s Hospital in critical condition.
The other was taken to a hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
The highway was closed to southbound traffic until about 3:45 p.m., and DriveBC warned travellers in the area to continue to expect major delays due to congestion.
Highway 1 remains closed in both directions between Lytton and Hope due to firefighting efforts, likely compounding delays from the Coquihalla closure.
Anyone with information or dashcam footage is asked to contact BC Highway Patrol Chilliwack.