It’s been a nightmare for commuters heading west into Vancouver Monday, as Highway 1 was closed in two places during the early morning rush hour.
A truck travelling along Highway 1 has hit the No. 3 Road overpass in Abbotsford Monday morning, bursting into flames and shutting down the highway and bridge.
The truck, which images from the scene show to be a dump truck and trailer, has been doused by the Abbotsford Fire Rescue Service and is now smoldering in the median.
Highway 1 westbound has been closed since about 5:30 a.m., and the No. 3 overpass has reopened after a bridge inspection. Eastbound traffic along the highway is down to one lane.
Traffic heading west is being detoured along No. 3 Road.
Abbotsford Police Department Sgt. Paul Walker told CityNews that it’s amazing the driver was not seriously hurt — the truck smashed into the support, the cab was destroyed and the vehicle then burst into flames.
Walker says the driver was able to get out of the cab quickly, and is cooperating with investigators.
“You can imagine all the impact of a fully loaded truck traveling at speed and striking the overpass is significant. Sometimes we might not be able to see the damage on the surface,” Walker said.
Not one, but two
Meanwhile, a second truck hit an overpass along Highway 1 in Langley Monday morning.
Just after 7 a.m., CityNews received calls from drivers who said a truck travelling west had hit the 264th Street overpass.
Caller Jim was driving past just after the collision happened, saying that while the truck had pulled over, there were chunks of concrete spread over the road, with a piece missing from the overpass.
“There’s probably less than a square foot taken out of the new repair that they’ve recently done there,” he said.
DriveBC says the highway is now closed heading west.
source:CityNews photo:Abbotsford Police Department
