Guys, it’s that time of year again. Those of us living in the northern regions of the Northern Hemisphere are gearing up for winter, which kicks in this week in parts of the United States and Canada. Changes in weather are sure to catch some motorists off guard, but we don’t often see first responders fall victim to slippery roads.
That’s exactly what happened to not one, or two, but three drivers in the city of Williams Lake, located in British Columbia about 340 miles north of Vancouver. Based on driving.ca, the first snowfall of the season recently hit the area and was severe enough to cause a power outage. Several roads were closed as a result, but this residential street does not appear to be included. Or maybe it is… we don’t have the full details but thanks to David Dean on TikTok, we have a video of two police cars and a pickup truck of a fire engine powerlessly hurtling down a hill.
We suspect authorities were on the scene to help other motorists, block roads, or both. Several vehicles were seen off the road or piled up in a minor collision, and exacerbated by an unmarked police SUV being pushed by a Williams Lake Fire Department truck down a hill. The video doesn’t capture how steep the incline is, but the slow motion slide-by The camera and the ensuing crash tell you everything you need to know.
But wait, there’s more.
A second TikTok video from Dean zooms in on a clearly marked police SUV from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. As before, the vehicle slid helplessly past the camera as the driver steered left and right, trying to find traction but all in vain. The Ford Explorer patrol car hit the truck, causing minor damage but no injuries.
It seems our friends up north are not without a sense of humor about all this. Williams Lake RCMP shared a fun photo on Facebook celebrating a pair of now viral videos, complete with a cake given to them from BC Health Services. It’s also a great opportunity for the police to remind motorists that winter is back, and drive with caution. That’s good advice, because the folks involved in last week’s 100-car build in Denver figured it out the hard way. Stay safe out there, everyone.
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