Speed and alcohol likely both played a role in a serious Canada Day crash, after the driver of a Porsche 911 caused a chain reaction involving five cars on Highway 1 Wednesday evening.
The accident happened eastbound between the Westview and Lonsdale exits around 8:30 p.m.
While travelling at high speed, the driver of a 2013 grey Porsche 911 made an unsafe lane change and collided with a Toyota Camry, according to police.
The force of the impact caused the Camry to spin around and be struck by a Toyota Tundra pickup truck.
The Porsche, meanwhile, struck a Mazda CX5 SUV, which in turn collided with a concrete barrier that was pushed into eastbound lanes of traffic on the highway. An approaching Acura sedan, in an attempt to avoid the collision, also struck the concrete barrier.
Eastbound traffic on the highway came to a standstill just as people were returning from Canada Day activities, while numerous officers from the North Vancouver RCMP detachment and Port Mann Highway Patrol investigated the accident.
Investigators determined alcohol and speed were likely factors in the accident, which sent the two drivers and two passengers of the Porsche and Mazda to Lions Gate Hospital by ambulance. Those people have all since been released from the hospital.
Police have recommended charges of impaired driving causing bodily harm and refusal to provide a blood sample be laid against the driver of the Porsche.
Wednesday’s accident came on the same day that police across the province launched their summer CounterAttack campaign. Of the 86 people killed on average each year by drunk drivers on B.C. roads, half of those deaths happen during the summer.
Cpl. Ronda Rempel, spokeswoman for the B.C. RCMP Traffic Services, said it was very fortunate nobody was killed in Wednesday’s accident, especially considering the number of people who were travelling that day.
The Upper Levels highway was closed for several hours Wednesday evening while the RCMP’s collision analysts continued their investigation to determine, among other factors, approximately how fast the Porsche was travelling.
All five vehicles were towed from the scene, with the Porsche being seized by investigators. Rempel said she didn’t know the extent of the damage to the vehicles, adding, “but, obviously, they all were very towable.”
