Twelve people lost their lives in accidents on the Sea to Sky Highway last year, while four people were killed in crashes on the highway in 2022. During a Committee of the Whole meeting on March 28, Staff Sgt. Gareth Bradley shared these statistics with the Squamish council.
Despite a decrease in overall collisions in 2023, Bradley noted that there were eight more deaths due to collisions than in 2022, with most occurring on the highway.
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Bradley emphasized that the Squamish RCMP placed a strong emphasis on impaired driving enforcement in 2023. “We conducted a significant number of impaired driving checks stops, especially on long weekends and around Christmas, resulting in a significant increase in the number of immediate roadside prohibitions,” he said.
In several instances, multiple officers in the detachment successfully located 25 impaired drivers and completed the investigations, making them eligible for awards given each year within the province. Bradley also remarked that incidents of public disturbances and intoxication in public places decreased last year.
Last year, Squamish RCMP also seized 19 firearms and 8,000 rounds of ammunition from a local man, which included 11 restricted firearms, one prohibited firearm and seven non-restricted firearms. He was also found with 8,000 rounds of ammunition as well as body armour.
In other news, one person was taken to the hospital after being injured in a crash on Highway 99 in West Vancouver this past Friday. The incident occurred on Highway 99 westbound near exit 4 in West Vancouver after a car went off the embankment, causing injuries to the driver.
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Paramedic public information officer Brian Twaites said, “BC Emergency Health Services received a call at 4:41 p.m. on April 7 regarding a motor vehicle incident on Highway 99 westbound near exit 4. Two ambulances responded to the scene. Paramedics provided emergency medical treatment to one patient and transported them to the hospital.”
Kirsten Andrews says
I’d be interested in learning how many stops are made for reckless/impaired driving based on calls from the public. Those numbers are so low compared to what we experience on a daily basis driving that highway. It’s almost a given that one or two unsafe drivers will pass me heading to or from Vancouver!
Rosalie Leborgne says
I lost my sister from a car accident on the sea to sky hwy a little over 10 years ago. It baffles me that local authorities still haven’t done anything to make it safer.