UPDATE:

Highway 97 has been fully reopened. The substance was identified as a form of finely crushed glass used in marking the highway and not toxic.

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The Lake Country RCMP have reduced highway traffic to single-lane with periodic full closures to allow a hazardous materials team to investigate the contents of a suspicious barrel in the ditch about two kilometres north of Oceola Road on Highway 97 adjacent to Wood Lake.

There have been no injuries and no contamination to Wood Lake.

Motorists are encouraged to use an alternate route until the highway can be fully reopened.