Wrong-way crash on Coquihalla Highway leaves one person dead

One person is dead following a head-on collision involving a passenger car and a transport van on the Coquihalla Highway near Merritt on Monday morning.

At approximately 8:08 a.m. on June 15, 2026, Merritt RCMP received a report of a small car travelling the wrong way on the highway near Comstock Road.

Just five minutes later, at about 8:13 a.m., police received a second call reporting that the vehicle had collided head-on with a transport van in the northbound lanes of the Coquihalla Highway.

Frontline officers from Merritt RCMP, along with members of BC Highway Patrol, BC Emergency Health Services and local fire crews, responded to the scene.

The driver, who was the sole occupant of the car, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Occupants of the transport van suffered injuries that were not considered life-threatening and were taken to hospital for treatment.

According to initial witness accounts, the car was travelling southbound in the northbound lanes at a high rate of speed before the crash.

The northbound lanes of the Coquihalla Highway remain closed while investigators continue to examine the scene. The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure is assisting with traffic control, and the roadway will reopen once it is deemed safe.

Police are asking anyone who may have dash camera footage from the area around the time of the collision to contact Merritt RCMP at 250-378-4262.