Update: Wrong-way driver killed in crash on the Coquihalla Highway Monday morning

UPDATE: A vehicle collision that has halted northbound traffic on the Coquihalla Highway from Hope to Merritt throughout the morning is confirmed to be fatal.

Merritt RCMP say they were told of a small car travelling in the wrong direction on Highway 5 near Comstock Road at 8:08 a.m. Monday. Five minutes later, police received a report saying the car was involved in a head-on collision with a transport van in the northbound lanes, with initial witness reports indicating the car was speeding.

In a news release issued Monday morning, RCMP say the driver and sole occupant of the car was pronounced dead at the scene. The occupants of the van suffered non-life-threatening injuries and were sent to hospital for treatment.

The northbound lanes near the collision are expected to reopen at 3 p.m. as investigators continue to assess the scene.