Kamloops RCMP officers nabbed 13 suspected impaired drivers last weekend

KAMLOOPS — As we head into another weekend, Kamloops RCMP are reminding motorists about one consequence of impaired driving.

In a news release, Cst. Crystal Evelyn notes 13 drivers were taken off the road last weekend because they were deemed to be impaired.

Evelyn says the drivers were caught in road checks, proactive patrols and traffic stops. Each was given a 90-day driving prohibition and had their vehicle impounded for 30 days.

One of the incidents involved a woman who had crashed her vehicle Friday evening (Oct. 22) near the East Trans Canada Highway and Valleyview Drive interchange. She had to be extracted from her vehicle but was uninjured. Evelyn says the woman failed roadside breath tests.

Four impaired drivers were nabbed later Friday night in Brocklehurst, at a road check set up near Greenfield Avenue and Desmond Street.

Traffic members found impaired drivers in the 1700-block of Tranquille Road, Barnhartvale Road and the East Trans Canada Highway off-ramp to Battle Street.

A woman driving an uninsured van was pulled over at about 11:30 p.m. near Columbia and Nicola Streets. The woman turned out to be a suspended driver and failed roadside breath tests.

The next evening, an off-duty officer breaking up a dispute between a driver and a pedestrian in the 200-block of Whitburn Crescent suspected impairment. When an on-duty officer responded, the driver failed roadside breath tests.

Another driver was collared after a vehicle drove through a front-yard fence on Surrey Avenue.

Sunday morning, two more impaired drivers were caught by a frontline officer — one at First Avenue and Columbia Street, the other at Columbia Street and Seventh Avenue.

Anyone who suspects they have come across an impaired driver is asked to contact Kamloops RCMP at (250) 828-3000.