Burnaby RCMP have released “shocking” dashcam video from inside the vehicle of a drunk driver who narrowly missed head-on collisions, crashed into vehicles and sheared off a fire hydrant before being arrested and charged.
The video, seized during the investigation, shows several, harrowing close calls as the Cadillac Escalade makes its way from Richmond to Burnaby on Jan. 8, 2021, according to a police news release Thursday.
The video shows the vehicle crossing the centre line towards oncoming traffic multiple times, narrowly missing other vehicles.
It also shows the Escalade blowing through a stop sign and a red light.
Pedestrians can be seen walking through an intersection, not far from the passing vehicle.
Police were first alerted to the situation at around 11:57 p.m. when several callers reported an SUV had hit parked vehicles and sheared off a fire hydrant near Royal Oak Avenue and Marine Drive, sending water gushing onto the street and into nearby homes.
But the Escalade kept going – on the wrong side of the street – before crashing into a stop sign near Gilley Avenue and Marine Drive just after midnight, according to the release.
By then, the SUV was badly damaged and missing a tire, the release said.
Burnaby RCMP have released the video ahead of the holiday season, hoping it will deter people from drinking and driving.
“Driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs is a criminal offence and can severely alter your life and the lives of others,” stated the release.
The driver of the Escalade, 62-year-old Siu Wei Leung of Burnaby, was charged with dangerous driving, impaired driving and failing to stop for police.
He was sentenced to six months of probation and handed a $1,000 fine and one-year driving prohibition after pleading guilty to impaired driving on Aug. 28. The other two charges were stayed.
Things could have ended much worse, according to Burnaby RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Mike Kalanj.
“It is shocking that nobody was killed or injured including the driver,” Kalanj said in the release. “This driver made a decision to put himself and others at risk when he got behind the wheel that night and drove through three cities.”
On average, 16 people are killed and 830 injured in 1,500 impaired-driving-related crashes annually in the Lower Mainland alone, according to the release.
Police have planned CounterAttack roadchecks all across the province over the coming weeks.
“If you plan on attending a gathering where alcohol is involved, please plan for a safe ride home,” Kalanj said. “If you choose to drive impaired, you are taking the risk of coming across a CounterAttack roadcheck and you will be taken off the road.”
