The women’s and men’s basketball games this weekend between the University of Victoria (UVic) and Thompson Rivers University (TRU) have been postponed following the tragic death of a member of the TRU men’s volleyball team.
The man died after a multi-vehicle crash at the intersection of University Drive and McGill Road in Kamloops at around 3 p.m. on Wednesday (Nov. 29).
A Dodge Ram truck collided with several small trees and struck a Volkswagen that was stopped at the red light. This crash created a second collision with four other vehicles.
All three people in the Volkswagen, all in their 20s, were taken to Royal Inland Hospital. One died from their injuries while the other two suffered serious injuries. Two people in a Jeep involved in the crash were also taken to hospital and have non-life-threatening injuries.
“Our hearts are broken for the victims and their families involved in this terrible tragedy,” said Kamloops RCMP officer in charge Supt. Jeff Pelley. “The loss is sure to have far-reaching impacts as we struggle to understand what happened and advance the active investigation as a priority.”
The postponed games were originally scheduled to take place at UVIC on Dec. 1 and Dec. 2. New dates haven’t been announced.
“Our primary focus is to send our love and support to TRU and all the student-athletes, friends, coaches and the families involved, UVic’s director of varsity performance sport said in a news release. “It’s unimaginable and heartbreaking beyond belief.”
– With files from Jordy Cunningham
READ MORE: 1 person dead from multi-vehicle crash in Kamloops