Christmas Eve bus crash on B.C. Highway 97C sends 53 people to hospital | 24CA News
Officials say a serious crash involving a passenger bus on B.C. Highway 97C, close to the Loon Lake exit of the Okanagan Connector, has despatched 53 folks to hospitals Saturday night.
DriveBC, the communications arm of the B.C. Ministry of Transportation, first tweeted that there was a “vehicle incident” that shut the freeway round 7 p.m. PT. At round 8:30 p.m. PT, B.C. Health Emergency Services tweeted that a number of units of emergency responders had been on the scene of the crash.
Interior Health, the native health-care authority, stated in an announcement at round 10 p.m. PT that they weren’t able to offer the extent of the accidents for many who had been despatched to hospital, together with whether or not there have been any fatalities. No trigger was instantly offered for the crash.
Highway 97C, or the Okanagan Connector, is a 224-km stretch of street that runs east from Cache Creek within the central Interior to Kelowna within the Okanagan Valley, B.C.’s third-largest metropolitan space.
Health Minister Adrian Dix stated the incident prompted Interior Health to provoke a Code Orange response to offer emergency care. The time period Code Orange is usually used to explain a mass casualty or catastrophe state of affairs at hospitals.
Medical groups are receiving the sufferers in Penticton Regional Hospital, Kelowna General Hospital and Nicola Valley Hospital in Merritt, in accordance with Interior Health. The authority stated they had been working to attach households with the crash victims on Saturday night time.
“In these situations, Interior Health activates staff in critical care areas such as the emergency department, medical imaging and surgery to support urgent patients,” Dix stated. “My deepest gratitude to the first responders and medical teams who responded immediately to the call.”
This night <a href=”https://twitter.com/BC_EHS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@BC_EHS</a> and <a href=”https://twitter.com/Interior_Health?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@Interior_Health</a> are responding to a bus crash close to Loon Lake Road on the Okanagan Connector. BC Ambulance paramedics had been dispatched and are on scene. Our ideas are with all affected throughout this tough time. 1/3<a href=”https://t.co/CcJNVi8EPs”>https://t.co/CcJNVi8EPs</a>
—@adriandix
Premier David Eby expressed his condolences to the folks injured within the crash by way of social media.
“Shocked and saddened by the news of a serious bus accident between Merritt and Kelowna on the Okanagan Connector,” a Twitter submit from Eby learn.
Shocked and saddened by the news of a critical bus accident between Merritt and Kelowna on the Okanagan Connector. Our ideas are with these impacted, their family members, and the primary responders and healthcare staff giving their all to deal with folks and preserve them secure.
—@Dave_Eby
According to DriveBC, the bus crash occurred close to the Loon Lake exit of the freeway, which is 330 km east of Vancouver and round 85 km west of Kelowna.
DriveBC stated the freeway connecting Merritt and Kelowna has been closed in each instructions as of seven:30 p.m. PT.
The crash comes after every week of winter storm warnings introduced vital snow all through B.C., together with to the southern Interior the place the crash occurred.
A particular climate assertion from Environment Canada, issued Saturday afternoon, warns that snow blended with ice pellets or freezing rain is anticipated within the Okanagan Valley beginning Sunday.
