One dead after car fire near Peace Arch border crossing
Posted May 2, 2019 12:09 pm.
Last Updated May 3, 2019 6:07 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
PEACE ARCH (NEWS 1130) – One man has died following a two-car crash near the Peace Arch border crossing that resulted in a car fire Thursday morning.
The crossing has re-opened to traffic in both directions, but the northbound lanes into Canada were closed for several hours.
Video footage posted to social media showed black smoke rising from what appeared to be two cars. The car fire was right across the line on what appears to be the Canadian side.
Surrey RCMP say the call came in about 11:30 a.m.
“Once officers arrived on scene they determined that a Porsche Cayenne and a Toyota Sienna were involved in a collision,” said Sgt. Chad Greig. “Shortly after the collision, the Toyota Sienna caught on fire.
“The driver of the Porsche Cayenne was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries and unfortunately the driver of the Toyota van was pronounced deceased at the scene,” Greig said.
It appears the cars involved were going northbound into Canada. Witnesses believe one car rear-ended another, sending both into those bushes and igniting a large fire.
BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) also responded to the call sending four ambulances.
“Several patients were treated on scene, and one was transported to hospital in serious but stable condition,” read an email from BCEHS.
“At this time, I do not have information on the drivers or the vehicles and where they are from,” Greig added. “If anybody has not spoken with the police yet and witnesses this collision or may have dash-cam footage please contact the RCMP as the investigators would like to speak with you.”
‘Quite a first day’
Mitchell Gerhardt was working in the garden during his first day of the job when the incident happened. He says one of the vans was going about 120 km/h when it pinned another van. That’s when Gerhardt saw the two vehicles heading straight towards him.
“Once they didn’t stop, both of them, I started running,” Gerhardt adds. “I jumped and ran out from behind the bed and came back from around the bed and saw that the van just burst into flames.”
“Quite a first day,” Gerhardt notes.
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