Two collisions on area highways resulted in three fatalities on Aug. 12.
At approximately 1 pm, Clinton RCMP were called to a single vehicle collision on Hwy. 97, 5 km north of Clinton. The driver of a Kia Rondo had entered a ditch and impacted a bank in a small gully. An elderly female passenger from Prince George was seriously injured, and was flown by air ambulance to Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops, where she later succumbed to her injuries.
The highway was temporarily closed by Central Interior Traffic Services and the Clinton RCMP, and reopened later that afternoon. The name of the passenger has not been released.
At approximately 2:30 pm that same afternoon, Ashcroft and Lytton RCMP were called to a two vehicle head-on collision on Hwy. 1, 6 kms north of Spences Bridge. The collision resulted in the death of two occupants, the driver and passenger of a Ford Focus. The driver of the other car, a Hyundai Santa Fe, was flown to Kelowna General Hospital via air ambulance with serious injuries.
The highway was closed for several hours, and traffic rerouted via Hwy. 97C in Ashcroft and Hwy. 8 in Spences Bridge, as the South East District Collision Reconstruction Unit investigated the scene.
Police do not believe that alcohol or speed were contributing factors in the incident.