3 dead after 2 Vancouver Island highway crashes

3 dead after 2 Vancouver Island highway crashes

16-year-old driver in one of the incidents arrested for impaired operation causing death

RCMP are investigating two separate crashes that killed three people on a stretch of Highway 19 between Nanoose Bay and Lantzville on Vancouver Island.

B.C. Highway Patrol say the most recent crash happened just after 3 a.m. PT Thursday and involved a 16-year-old female driver from the Nanaimo area, who was allegedly impaired.

She was travelling northbound along the highway near Ware Road when she crashed head-on into another vehicle in the southbound lane, media relations officer Sgt. Michael McLaughlin said. The two male occupants of the other vehicle died at the scene.

"This is a terrible crash," McLaughlin said.

"It's really important that we speak to more witnesses and gather more video to sort out exactly how this happened."

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He said investigators have already spoken with several witnesses.

The 16-year-old driver was arrested for impaired operation causing death and dangerous driving causing death. She was taken to hospital with injuries police say were not believed to be life-threatening.

Southbound traffic in the area was closed for several hours Thursday morning as police investigated the scene.

An earlier crash along the same highway also proved fatal.

Oceanside RCMP said a single vehicle rolled over near the Nanoose Bay rest area, about 10 kilometres north of Lantzville, at around 6:45 p.m. PT Wednesday.

A 20-year-old female passenger died at the scene, according to Sgt. Shane Worth.

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He said the 21-year-old driver was transported to hospital with minor injuries and a second passenger was transported to hospital in critical condition.

The northbound lanes of the highway were closed for several hours Wednesday evening.

Worth said crashes on that particular stretch of highway can make travelling difficult because the median is separated by a concrete barrier and there are no alternate routes.

Maryse Zeidler is a reporter with CBC British Columbia who covers news from Nanaimo and north Vancouver Island. You can reach her at maryse.zeidler@cbc.ca.