Divers continue searching Skeena River for missing motorist

Vehicle went off Hwy16 east of Prince Rupert yesterday afternoon

  • Sep. 12, 2014 9:00 a.m.

The body of one person has been removed from a vehicle that left Hwy16 and entered the Skeena River in the area of Telegraph Point approximately 40 kilometres east of Prince Rupert yesterday afternoon.

One person, the driver, is still missing while a third person was been taken to hospital in Prince Rupert, report RCMP.

The investigation into what caused the vehicle to go off the road is still under investigation and the search for the missing driver continues, say RCMP.

The accident was reported just before 3 p.m. yesterday afternoon when a Terrace Search and Rescue member, travelling on the highway, saw the vehicle go into the Skeena River, says Dave Jephson from Terrace Search and Rescue.

He stopped and other motorists also stopped and helped him prepare for responding search and rescue crews who were called along with police, said Jephson.

A woman did manage to get out of the car and received care at the scene, he said.

An air ambulance was called to the scene, and divers from Prince Rupert arrived too, he added.

Crews searched the area until dark last night and will resume the search this morning.

The Skeena River in the area of the accident is affected by ocean tides and crews are dealing with tidal waters, said Jephson.

The section of Highway 16 at the scene was closed mid-afternoon but as of late yesterday, was reopened to single-lane alternating traffic.

 

Terrace Standard