A B.C. Supreme Court Justice has found a B.C. Peace man negligent for failing to warn other motorists there was a moose on the road after he had struck the animal.
The failure led to a head-on collision between two other vehicles after another driver also struck the moose and swerved into the oncoming lane.
In a decision issued Friday, Justice Jeanne Watchuk found it took Harris Wheeler, 71, at least 21 minutes to return to the scene after he decided to drive further on before checking his truck for damage and then find a safe spot to turn around.
The Charlie Lake resident ran into the moose shortly after 7 p.m. on Feb. 21, 2011 while heading north on Highway 97. The collision occurred on a straight stretch about 11.5 kilometres south of Taylor between 228 Road and 230 Road.
Watchuk found that nine minutes later, Aron Walter, who was also driving north shortly after leaving his home on 228 Road, hit the moose, lost control of his pickup truck, and collided head on with a sport utility vehicle driven by Raymond Ziemer, who was accompanied by his wife and baby and was heading south from Fort St. John.
During a trial held over 12 days in Prince George, Wheeler testified that after hitting the moose, he drove 100 to 150 yards further before pulling off to check his vehicle for damage. Wheeler told the court he then drove another 200 yards before turning around for a total of 350 yards or 320 metres.
Wheeler also testified that shortly after he left the scene of his collision with the moose, he saw a string of about three southbound vehicles pass by him. He then looked in his rear view mirror to see a puff of snow, the court was told, indicating the collision between Walter and Ziemer occurred just 10 to 15 seconds after Wheeler drove off.
However, Watchuk did not accept Wheeler's submission, in part dismissing his story as an "example of reconstruction." She also concluded Wheeler drove considerably further, to a point north of 230 Road, which is about 750 metres north of the collision scenes.
Wheeler's truck was "extraordinarily well lit," Watchuk noted, and found Walter, Ziemer and the three witnesses who arrived on the scene would have seen his truck if he had stopped where he said he did. She also found that one of the witnesses was talking to 911 for about eight minutes before Wheeler had returned to the scene.
Watchuk noted Wheeler was carrying flares and said it was "neither prudent nor necessary" for Wheeler to check his vehicle before warning other drivers. But even with if it's accepted Wheeler, "in the agony of collision, made an erroneous decision to attend to his vehicle before fulfilling his duty to other motorists," Watchuk said the collision between Walter and Ziemer occurred three minutes after Wheeler completed that step.
Moreover, Watchuk found Wheeler's "stated intention is not confirmed by his actions after he collided with the moose," and noted in part that he did not flash his headlights to warn oncoming drivers as he headed north.
Assessment of damages for injuries sustained, which were not detailed in the decision, will be determined at a later date.
