Emergency crews were kept busy over the May long weekend with a pair of fatal car crashes in the Fraser Valley.
Three people were killed in two separate traffic accidents in the Lower Mainland Saturday evening and early Sunday morning.
Around 5:45 p.m. on Saturday, a car veered off the Trans Canada Highway east of Chilliwack, killing one passenger, said Sgt. Mike Sargent of the Chilliwack RCMP. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene, Sargent said, and the accident is being investigated.
Hours later in Surrey, the RCMP received multiple calls reporting a serious car crash involving at least three cars, and leaving two people dead.
Around 12:30 a.m. Sunday, Toyota 4-Runner westbound on 88 Avenue in Surrey was attempting to turn left onto 152 Street when it was struck by an eastbound Hyundai, according to an RCMP release. After colliding with the 4-Runner, the Hyundai “deflected off, then struck a third vehicle that was travelling westbound on 88th Avenue,” the release said.
One person was pronounced dead at the scene. Four people were transported to hospital by ambulance, and a second person was pronounced dead at the hospital after succumbing to their injuries.
One person remains in critical condition, the RCMP release said, while two others are in serious but stable condition in hospital.
It was not immediately clear which vehicles the deceased people had been travelling in, and police said no further information was expected to be released Sunday pending notification of next of kin.
The incident is under investigation. Police are asking anyone who may have any witnessed the collision or seen the involved vehicles before the crash, to contact Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502 or to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Police said no further information was expected to be released until Tuesday.
Meanwhile in Whistler, Mounties had been gearing up for a potentially hectic Victoria Day weekend, which has become the resort municipality’s busiest night of the year. But the Friday and Saturday of this year’s long weekend had been quieter than previous years, police said.
“We had a lot less calls for service than we had in previous years,” Whistler RCMP spokesman Sgt. Rob Knapton said Sunday afternoon.
“I got off work at 4 in the morning (Sunday), and I can tell you it was quite a bit different than it had been the year before,” said Knapton. “There was definitely a reduction in the amount of people here, and we had a much better crowd to deal with.”
Whistler RCMP took six people into custody Saturday, which is traditionally the busiest night of the May long weekend, Knapton said. Over the course of the 2015 May long weekend, police took 20 people into custody, RCMP said last week. In 2014, they had 38 prisoners.
The Whistler RCMP had 16 calls for service Saturday night between 7 p.m. and 4 a.m., compared with 23 calls for service over the same period the year before.
Police have been conducting anti-drunk driving roadblocks, and have stepped up foot patrols in the village, Knapton said.
