Image Credit: Google Maps
November 18, 2015 - 7:37 AM
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Several early morning crashes led to road closures on area highways today.
Highway 97C westbound at the junction with Highway 97 has been shut down since just after 4 a.m. because of a vehicle incident. Drive B.C. is reporting no detours and estimates the highway will reopen around 8:30 a.m.
Meanwhile a second crash nearby shut down southbound lanes on Highway 97 by the junction with Highway 97C for a short time this morning while a little further away a crash on the northbound lanes of the Coquihalla highway near Comstock, exit 276, around 4 a.m. shut down traffic heading north. The highway was reopened around 7 a.m., with one lane still blocked.
We also have initial unconfirmed reports of a crash on Glenmore Road near the Glenmore landfill this morning.
Winter driving conditions are being reported around the region, including compact snow with slushy sections, blowing snow and in some areas fog. Black ice is being reported on Highway 97 from Summerland through West Kelowna.
Nearly 60 millimetres of rain and about 13 centimetres of snow fell at the Coquihalla Summit yesterday while Pennask Summit received 13 cm of snow and now has 82.6 cm of snow on the ground. Rogers Pass received the most snow during the 24-hour period ending at 4 p.m. yesterday, with 50 cm falling.
The strongest wind gusts in the region yesterday were recorded in Lytton, at 85 kilometres per hour, while Penticton was hit by 80 km/h gusts and Summerland by 76 km/h gusts.
For the most current conditions and road closures, check out the Drive B.C. website.
To contact a reporter for this story, email Jennifer Stahn at jstahn@infonews.ca or call 250-819-3723. To contact an editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2015