(JESSICA WALLACE / iNFOnews.ca)
March 25, 2013 - 11:17 AM
UPDATE: March 25, 2013 - 12:17 p.m.
A cement truck driver is 'lucky' to be alive after hitting a power pole this morning on the Yellowhead Highway.
Kamloops RCMP Staff Sgt. Doug Aird said the truck was heading north on the highway near the Sun Peaks exit when it crashed into the pole, at about 10:20 a.m. ejecting the vehicle's load. The driver was trapped inside, pinned inside the vehicle.
"(It) looks like the cab actually folded around the driver," Aird said.
The man was rushed to Royal Inland Hospital in an ambulance about an hour after the crash when firefighters removed him from the vehicle.
"He's got serious injuries," Aird said. "(He is) very lucky."
RCMP have set up a large perimeter around the accident scene and are investigating the cause of the crash.
Aird said a number of factors may be involved such as speed and complications from the truck's weight.
Travellers are advised that single-lane traffic is expected for two to three hours.
UPDATE: March 25, 2013 - 11:20 a.m.
RCMP on scene of an accident where a cement truck has hit a hydro pole in the 5200 block of the Yellowhead Highway north of Kamloops have opened one lane in each direction, alternating traffic to relieve congestion.
March 25, 2013 - 11:17 a.m.
Emergency crews are on the scene of an accident involving a cement truck in the 5200 block of the Yellowhead Highway north of Kamloops.
The cement truck crashed into a phone pole and a lone occupant is trapped inside the vehicle.
The media and bystanders have all been pushed back 100 feet from the scene because downed power lines are arcing. B.C. Hydro is working to remedy the problem and help emergency crews free the occupant of the truck. The highway remains closed in both directions.
A critical care helicopter was dispatched but cancelled.
To contact a reporter for this story, email: jwallace@infotelnews.ca or call (250) 319-7494.
(JESSICA WALLACE / iNFOnews.ca)
News from © iNFOnews, 2013