By Cindy Filipenko
A single car MVA that took the lives of two young men and landed a third in critical care at Vancouver General Hospital, has left the Mt. Currie community grieving.
Four young men were in a car heading south along Lillooet Lake Road near the Lil’wat new town site in Mt. Currie Saturday when their vehicle collided with a tree. All four of the occupants were residents of the community of 1,800.
The men were travelling home in the early evening of Saturday, April 14 after taking part in an afternoon fishing derby at Lillooet Lake organized by members of the Lil’wat Nation. Many other community members, travelling home from the same event, witnessed the devastating accident.
According to RCMP Cpl. Paul Vadik, it is believed that both excessive speed and alcohol were factors in the accident. A toxicology report to determine whether alcohol was involved is still pending.
Pronounced dead at the scene of the accident were Rodney Joe, 32, and Ken Dan, 26.
Two other men were airlifted to Vancouver for treatment. Brent Whitehead, 26, remains in hospital, his condition listed as critical but stable according to a VGH media spokesperson. A fourth, unnamed, man who sustained minor injuries, was treated and released.
Cpl Vadik attributed the fourth man’s minor injuries to the fact he was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the collision. The other men were found not to be using seatbelts.
Collision analysts from the Lower Mainland were on the scene to investigate how the accident occurred.
