Motor vehicle crashes, some of them weather-related, and other driving-related offences kept Squamish RCMP busy during the past week.
Last Friday (Feb. 18) at 3:22 a.m., a police officer on patrol near Edgewater Crescent in North Yards passed a vehicle idling on the left side of the road. It was snowing heavily and the roads were snow-covered, RCMP Staff Sgt. Guy Pollock said in a statement.
The vehicle pulled away from the side of the road - following the police car - and the officer noticed the trailing vehicle swerving back and forth across the centre line, Pollock said. It then lost control and spun around and proceeded down the road with the driver facing in the opposite direction. The driver then reversed and continued driving down Government Road.
The officer pulled the police car to the side of the road and the other vehicle passed, still driving in reverse. The officer then activated the police car's emergency lights and siren and the subject vehicle didn't pull over for another two blocks, Pollock said.
Upon approaching the vehicle, the officer noticed a strong smell of liquor. The driver, a 19-year-old male Squamish resident, was arrested for impaired driving and, when issued a demand to provide a breath sample, blew a "fail" on a roadside screening device.
The driver was issued with an immediate 90-day roadside driving prohibition and the vehicle was impounded for 30 days. The driver was also ticketed for driving without due care and attention (a $368 fine) and failing to produce a driver's license ($81).
Impaired charges pending
A Washington State resident was taken off the road and faces impaired driving charges after crashing his Mercedes-Benz vehicle on Highway 99 at the Culliton Creek Bridge.
On Monday (Feb. 21) at around 3:30 p.m., police attended the scene of the crash, in which the vehicle sustained considerable damage, Pollock said. Witnesses at the scene pointed out the driver, who first blew a "fail" on a roadside screening device, then after being taken to the Squamish detachment, blew readings of .14 and .13 on a breathalyzer.
The driver was issued a 30-day administrative driving prohibition and released on a promise to appear in court, Pollock said.
Two injured in crash
Two people sustained minor injuries and one driver was ticketed for failing to stop at a red light after a two-vehicle collision on Highway 99 at Shannon Falls on Tuesday, Feb. 15 at around 5:35 p.m.
A 2008 Nissan station wagon was turning onto the highway when a southbound 1992 BMW sedan ran a red light, striking the Nissan. The two vehicles sustained extensive damage, and the driver and a passenger from the Nissan were taken to Squamish General Hospital to be treated for their injuries, Pollock said.
Highway 99 was closed for about 30 minutes as ambulance, police and Squamish Fire Rescue personnel worked to investigate and clear the accident scene. The driver of the BMW is facing a charge of disobeying a red light, which carries a fine of $167.
Snow snarls traffic
Highway 99 was closed at Murrin Park for about two hours during the evening hours on Thursday, Feb. 17, as police and road maintenance crews plowed the road and cleared away several vehicles that had difficulty making it up the hill from Britannia Beach in snowy conditions. One vehicle slid off the road and into the ditch, Pollock said.
Fifteen 'hits' registered
Police issued several tickets for no driver's licence and no vehicle insurance, made one drug seizure and issued a 24-hour driving prohibition and a three-month notice of prohibition during a sweep on Sunday (Feb. 20) using an automatic licence plate recognition device.
The device, which is normally affixed to a police vehicle, reads licence plates as vehicles drive past. During a three-hour period along Highway 99 in Squamish, the instrument read 1,879 plates and provided 15 "hits," Pollock said.
