Trucker killed in multi-vehicle Coquihalla Highway crash
CBC News
Posted: Jan 10, 2012 6:25 AM PT
Last Updated: Jan 10, 2012 8:57 PM PT
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RCMP confirm a truck driver was killed in a six-vehicle crash on B.C.'s Coquihalla Highway.
A six-vehicle crash involving multiple commerical vehicles closed the Coquihalla Highway in both directions early Tuesday morning. (Leia Hutchings/CBC)Officers say three semi trucks slammed into one another at around 2:30 a.m. PT. A number of other vehicles were also involved.
The crash killed one man and media reports say a second person was taken to hospital in Merritt.
Police say the highway was closed for nearly 10 hours while the accident was cleared.
Truck driver crushed
Highway workers say a man was killed when he got out of his truck after it had been hit. He was then struck by another semi in a chain-reaction crash.
Workers say other drivers didn't realize the man had been crushed between the two trucks until shortly after 4 a.m., when a tow truck arrived to clear the wreckage.
His body was found under the cab of another truck.
The crash closed the route from the Exit 202 Portia Interchange to Merritt, stalling traffic for several hours.
Highway officials describe overnight conditions on the Coquihalla as "treacherous" after 18 centimetres of snow fell in a matter of hours "making visibility poor and road conditions hazardous."
With files from the CBC's Leia HutchingsShare Tools
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