The intersection of Highway 97 and 25th Avenue in Vernon is closed after a semi hit and killed a woman Sunday.
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September 09, 2013 - 8:12 AM
UPDATE: 10:45 a.m. September 9, 2013
VERNON - The police are working closely with the B.C. Coroners Service after a Vernon woman was hit by a semi and killed Sunday.
RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says the 33-year-old woman stepped off the curb onto Highway 97 by Polson Park around 11 a.m. She wasn't on a crosswalk.
An 18-wheel semi tractor-trailer coming down the hill and preparing to stop at the intersection had no time to avoid hitting the woman. Skid marks were left behind as the Armstrong man hit his brakes.
"We are still following up with several people who witnessed this accident," Molendyk says.
Molendyk isn't sure where the semi driver is from but says he is "shaken up as you can fully appreciate."
He says the driver is fully cooperating with police.
"There are definitely no indications speed or alcohol were involved from the driver's actions," he says.
RCMP are following up on the possibility that the woman intentionally stepped onto the highway.
"It's a tragic thing that happened here," he says.
More information is expected from the B.C. Coroners Service this week.
To contact the reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infotelnews.ca, call (250)309-5230 or tweet @charhelston.
UPDATE: 2:27 p.m., Sept. 8, 2013
SEMI HITS AND KILLS WOMAN
VERNON – A woman in her 30’s is dead after she was hit by a northbound 18-wheel semi tractor-trailer unit at the bottom of hospital hill.
“The woman died of her injuries at the scene,” according to Vernon RCMP media spokesperson Gord Molendyk. “There is no indication that speed or alcohol was a factor in this crash.”
Highway 97 and 25th Avenue have re-opened. The busiest intersection in the city was closed for about 3 hours as investigators took measurements and re-constructed the fatal crash.
Both the RCMP and the B.C. Coroners Service continue to investigate.
The woman’s name hasn’t been released.
1:59 p.m., Sept. 8, 2013
VERNON - A detour is in effect as RCMP investigators try to figure out how and why a woman was hit and killed by a semi at the bottom of hospital hill in Vernon.
It happened at about 11:10 a.m.
The pedestrian was struck in the intersection of Highway 97 and 25th Avenue.
It’s Vernon’s busiest and, as a result, most dangerous intersections. It underwent a compete re-design and re-build last year to make it safer.
The Ministry of Transportation’s Drive B.C. website estimates the highway will re-open sometime between 3 and 5 p.m. this afternoon.
Traffic is being detoured onto 16th Avenue, Mission Road and 25th Avenue.
To contact the reporter for this story, email halexander@infotelnews.ca or call 250-491-0331.
News from © iNFOnews, 2013