Kelowna man wandering across Bennett bridge caused five-vehicle crash

WEST KELOWNA – A pedestrian wandering through lanes of traffic on the William R. Bennett Bridge Aug. 10 was taken into custody after setting off a series of crashes. 

RCMP received reports Aug. 10 just before 10:30 p.m., of a shirt-less man walking westbound across the bridge. Once they arrived, they discovered the man had caused a chain reaction, rear-end collision involving a total of five motor vehicles, including a motorcycle.

“The motorcycle operator, a West Kelowna man in his 40s, was fortunate to escape serious injuries after he was ejected from his Yamaha street bike,” Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey said in a press release. “The impact of the rear-end collision ejected the rider from his bike and through the rear window of the Mercedes Benz in front of him.”

A grey Nissan Rogue, a grey GMC Yukon and a Dodge Durango were also involved in the crash. B.C. Emergency Health Services assessed multiple vehicle occupants at the scene and transported one passenger to hospital as a precaution.

RCMP later located the pedestrian, who police believed to be under the influence of intoxicants, asleep inside a vehicle parked on the west end of the bridge. The individual was positively identified and taken into police custody due to an unrelated warrant out of the North Okanagan for his arrest.

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