Photo by Vince Fedoroff
ROAD TRAGEDY – This GMC Canyon was one of the two vehicles involved in Thursday evening's fatal collision in slippery conditions just south of the Wolf Creek campground. Below: traffic was backed up for about 45 minutes while emergency personnel worked at the scene.
One person is dead following a head-on collision Thursday evening on the Alaska Highway just south of the Wolf Creek campground.
One person is dead following a head-on collision Thursday evening on the Alaska Highway just south of the Wolf Creek campground.
The crash, which occurred at 6:15 p.m., involved a southbound GMC Canyon and a northbound Honda car, Whitehorse RCMP reported this morning.
The two vehicles collided head-on at the top of the hill about 100 metres south of the campground entrance.
A 33-year-old Whitehorse woman was pronounced dead on the scene.
The other driver, a 66-year-old Carcross man, was taken to Whitehorse General Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police are not releasing the woman's name, nor are they saying which vehicle she was driving.
Both drivers were alone in their vehicles.
The Alaska Highway was closed in both directions for a short time to allow emergency vehicles to access the scene and to protect emergency workers and the public, police said in a press release today.
The highway was opened for alternating one-way traffic once the scene was safe, and an RCMP traffic analyst was on the scene until about 6:00 this morning, when two-way traffic was again permitted.
"Whitehorse RCMP offer their condolences to the family of the deceased,” Insp. Mark Wharton said in a statement today.
"We want to remind everyone that driving conditions may change quickly and without notice.”
Police do not believe alcohol was a factor in the fatal collision, and reported both drivers were wearing seatbelts.
"It is not known what factor road conditions may have played but temperatures were near the freezing point at the time of the collision,” police said today.
The investigation is continuing but a preliminary report will likely not be available for some time, said RCMP spokesman Sgt. Don Rogers.
The Department of Highways and Public Works had sanded the area last night and another truck was on the scene in the hours after the crash. The department extended its condolences to the woman's family today.
A vehicle roll-over occurred at the same spot two weeks ago. Last February, two people were sent to hospital after a cement truck collided with an SUV on the other side of the Wolf Creek subdivision.
Icy conditions were to blame in the February crash.
In order to encourage thoughtful and responsible discussion, website comments will not be visible until a moderator approves them. Please add comments judiciously and refrain from maligning any individual or institution. Read about our user comment and privacy policies.
Your name and email address are required before your comment is posted. Otherwise, your comment will not be posted.
Be the first to comment