Two people have been injured in a rollover crash on the Malahat involving a fuel truck that has leaked an undetermined amount of fuel.
The Trans-Canada Highway was closed in both directions at Goldstream Provincial Park and reopened at roughly 12:40 a.m. Friday.
READ MORE: Malahat closure snarls traffic
“The cause of the collision is under investigation. The fuel spill is a risk for motorists and first responders, as well as a potential environmental hazard. We ask for patience from drivers who are affected by any delays as emergency crews deal with the closure of Highway 1,” said West Shore RCMP Cpl. Chris Dovell.
A small fuel truck and a passenger van crashed shortly before 11 a.m. Thursday near Finlayson Arm Road. The driver of the van was trapped inside after the crash and emergency crews were able to extricate the driver, who is suffering from non-life threatening injuries.
The driver of the fuel truck also suffered some injuries in the crash.
B.C. Emergency Health Services confirmed paramedics have transported two patients to hospital. One is in serious condition, the other is in stable condition.
West Shore RCMP Const. Matt Baker noted the front driver side of the van suffered significant damage and the driver was critically injured but those injuries were not life threatening.
Baker confirmed the fuel truck was on its side when emergency crews arrived on scene.
The truck was leaking fuel in the southbound lane but emergency crews were able to stop the leak.
Emergency crews are on scene assessing the environmental impact of the fuel spill.
Langford Fire Chief Chris Aubrey said the fuel truck was carrying up to 2,200 litres of furnace oil. While furnace oil and diesel from the truck’s fuel tank leaked onto the roadway, Aubrey was unable to confirm how much was spilled.
Aubrey is optimistic crews were able to contain the spill.
“We won’t know for sure until the vehicle is out of there,” he said. “At this point it looks like we were able to keep it contained and stopped it from leaking into the river … While it’s unfortunate there’s not a lot of alternate routes available, our number one priority is to get that road opened up as soon as we safely can do it.”
The West Shore RCMP’s traffic services team is investigating the cause of the crash. B.C. Hazmat has also been called to the scene and B.C. Spill Response is also reporting crews on route.
Hazmat Emergency Response vehicle heads up the Trans Canada Hwy to clean up a diesel spill after an accident involving a small fuel truck and another vehicle. #yyj #yyjnews #yyjtraffic pic.twitter.com/hCtub1IzD6
— Lindsey Horsting (@lindseyhorsting) May 24, 2018
The Trans-Canada Highway is closed in both directions and traffic in surrounding areas and on detour routes is being heavily impacted. Crews are hoping to have the roadway reopened before the Friday morning commute.
Back in 2011, a Victoria-bound fuel truck rolled and crashed into the rock face in roughly the same area of the Malahat. That truck spilled roughly 42,000 litres of gasoline and 700 litres of diesel into a culvert that emptied into the popular fish-bearing stream in Goldstream Provincial Park.
