A collision during the breakfast commute on Thursday has the
distinct odour of alcohol.
Police allege the driver of a tractor-trailer heading north through the city was already drunk by 8:30 a.m., and that was a factor in crashing into a Pontiac Sunfire at the junction of Highway 97 and Highway 16.
According to early police
analysis, the Sunfire was stopped for a red light in the northbound lane of Highway 97. The tractor-trailer came up behind the car and failed to stop. It piled into the rear of the parked vehicle.
Although injured, the lone occupant of the Sunfire was able to get out and speak with the uninjured driver of the rig. The Sunfire driver noted the smell of alcohol on the breath of the trucker.
It was about 8:30 a.m. when police were called to the scene. In the few minutes it took them to get there, the trucker had already departed the crash site, said Prince George RCMP spokesman Cpl. Craig Douglass.
"The tractor-trailer was located a few minutes later on Queensway by members of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Enforcement branch (CVSE)," Douglass said. "The driver of the tractor-trailer was thought to be impaired by alcohol and was
detained."
The 38-year-old resident of Terrace was transported back to the Prince George RCMP detachment where he provided two breath samples, each more than twice the legal limit, say police.
The injuries to the Sunfire driver were not known, as of press time. They were believed to be non-life-threatening but required medical attention at university hospital.
The driver of the rig provided his personal identification details to the Sunfire driver, said police, then quickly left the scene.
"It is disturbing that, allegedly, a professional driver is out there driving while impaired, and driving quite a piece of machinery, and at that early hour," said Douglass. "But we can tell you from experience, it doesn't matter what time of day it is, we encounter drivers who are impaired."
Criminal Code charges of impaired driving and impaired over .08 (blood-alcohol content), are being recommended against the driver, who was released on a Promise to Appear for court on a later date.
If you have any information about impaired drivers in our community, please contact the Prince George RCMP at (250)561-3300, or anonymously contact Crime Stoppers at 1(800)222-TIPS (8477), online at www.pgcrimestoppers.bc.ca, or
Text-A-Tip to CRIMES using keyword "pgtips".
