Penticton police respond to channel crash and plaza fire overnight

PENTICTON – A vehicle went through the intersection and narrowly escaped the waters of the Okanagan River Channel near Channel Parkway and Highway 97 south of Penticton last night.

The incident occurred around 8:30 p.m. Monday, March 7, when a southbound vehicle failed to turn at the three-way intersection and went over a concrete barrier before getting hung up on the edge of the channel.

RCMP media spokesperson Cpl. Don Wrigglesworth says witnesses suggested the driver was going too fast. Driver inattentiveness may have also contributed to the incident.

No injuries were reported, and alcohol is not believed to have factored in the incident.

Around 12:40 a.m. today, March 8, a Penticton taxi driver alerted police to a man lighting a fire at Penticton Plaza. RCMP arrived to find a man beside a burning newspaper box, located between Copper Mug Pub and the B.C. Liquor Store.

Police were able to extinguish the blaze with a fire extinguisher prior to the arrival of the Penticton Fire Department, who noted the fire was burning next to a wall with a foam core which could have spread quickly, had it ignited.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Steve Arstad at sarstad@infonews.ca or call 250-488-3065. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.