A five-year-old boy who was a passenger in a pickup truck escaped without injury despite a devastating head-on collision with a tractor-trailer on the Trans-Canada Highway on Sunday.
The 72-year-old driver of the pickup was not as fortunate, suffering from critical injuries that required him to be airlifted to Kelowna General Hospital from the scene by helicopter ambulance.
The incident happened at about 2 p.m. on Aug. 19 east of Albert Canyon in Glacier National Park.
Revelstoke RCMP say the eastbound senior driver crossed the centre line and hit the westbound tractor-trailer "almost head on."
The violent impact spun the pickup around and flung it about five metres down an embankment on the westbound side of the road.
The assistance of Revelstoke Search & Rescue was required to extract the critically-injured Nanaimo man from the pickup truck.
The boy was "shaken but not injured" said RCMP spokesperson Staff-Sgt. Jacquie Olsen. The driver of the tractor-trailer and his passenger also escaped injury.
A BCAS spokesperson said the man was listed with critical injuries on Sunday. Olsen told the Times Review the man's condition had improved by Monday, and is now listed as serious.
The crash also resulted in a small fuel leak, which slowed traffic for hours while it was cleaned up.
Police say the reason why the truck crossed the centre line is unknown at this time.
Breaking News story, published Sunday, Aug. 19 at 5 p.m.
A patient suffering from critical injuries has been flown to Kelowna General Hospital by helicopter ambulance following an MVI in Glacier National Park near Albert Canyon on Sunday, Aug. 19.
B.C. Ambulance Service spokesperson Chris Harvord said ambulance crews were dispatched to the scene just after 2 p.m.
The individual was treated on scene, before being flown to hospital. It is not known if the patient is male or female.
A second patient suffering from minor injuries was transported to Queen Victoria Hospital in Revelstoke.
A witness to the incident told the Times Review that the crash looked very serious.
Revelstoke RCMP and Parks Canada spokespersons were not immediately available for comment.
Early, unconfirmed reports indicate a tractor-trailer made contact with another vehicle that was severely damaged and came to a rest off the road.
There are also unconfirmed reports that a significant diesel spill leaked into an adjacent river.
The Times Review will update this story when officials are available for comment.