Police received ‘multiple’ calls before Ladysmith, B.C., crash sent two to hospital

LADYSMITH — Police on Vancouver Island say they’ve arrested a driver after a head-on crash at a highway intersection in Ladysmith, B.C., on Saturday.

Nanaimo RCMP say they received multiple calls about an aggressive driver of a Dodge Ram on the Trans Canada Highway in the minutes before the truck crashed head-on with a Nissan Sentra.

Police say the crash occurred at the intersection of the highway and Timberlands Road in Ladysmith around 7 p.m. Saturday evening.

Mounties say the truck was reported to be speeding and hitting other vehicles while running red lights, and the crash happened at a “high rate of speed” after the Dodge allegedly ran a red light, which they say caused significant front end damage to the smaller car.

Police say the truck kept going after the crash in the wrong direction in the northbound lane before hitting a median, and the driver fled before being picked up by police.

Police say both people in the Nissan were taken to hospital by BC Emergency Health Services, and investigators are looking to speak with people who may have seen the truck swerving onto sidewalks, running red lights and hitting a maroon coloured sedan on Aug. 2 just before 7 p.m.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 4, 2025.