A woman is dead after a car plunged down a steep embankment in B.C.’s Interior on Wednesday afternoon.
According to B.C. Highway Patrol, the single-vehicle incident happened along the Trans-Canada Highway near Field, one kilometre inside the west gate of Yoho National Park.
Police say a westbound blue Chrysler PT Cruiser crossed the highway’s centre line and went over a steep embankment on the eastbound side around 3:30 p.m.
“The passenger, a woman in her 30s of no fixed address, was ejected from the vehicle and pronounced deceased at the scene,” said B.C. Highway Patrol.
“She is not believed to have been wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.”
Police said the driver was a man in his 50s from Kelowna, and that he was transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
“Driver impairment has not been ruled out as a contributing factor,” said B.C. Highway Patrol.
The crash is being investigated and next-of-kin notification is currently pending. Police added that the highway was temporarily reduced to single-lane, alternating traffic before being fully reopened.
If you witnessed this incident or have dashcam video of the car prior to the accident, you are asked to contact B.C. Highway Patrol in Golden at 250-344-2221 and refer to file number 2023-1547.