Highway 1 through Burnaby, British Columbia, reopened Tuesday afternoon, nearly 10 hours after being closed westbound due to a serious multi-vehicle collision.

The highway was closed westbound, from Gaglardi Way to Kensington Avenue, from about 3 a.m. to about 12:30 p.m.

Burnaby RCMP initially said five vehicles were involved in the collision, the BC Highway Patrol later said “at least four vehicles.”

2:56
Accident closes Highway 1 through Burnaby

Five people received medical treatment, including three with serious injuries requiring hospitalization, the Highway Patrol said.

“This investigation is in its early stages, but it appears that at least two serious injuries occurred after the initial collision while people were outside of their vehicles,” said Cpl. Michael McLaughlin of the BC Highway Patrol said in a statement.

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“Remember that all pedestrians are extremely vulnerable around roads, even and especially when people are trying to help them after a collision.”

British Columbia Emergency Health Services said seven ambulances with primary care paramedics, advanced care paramedics and a supervisor attended the scene.

Video from the scene showed a Toyota sedan with a badly damaged front end and its passenger door on the ground.

Other vehicles were seen stopped on the side of the road.

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Havoc on Highway 1 as truck crash in Fraser Valley closes road in both directions

Although the investigation is in its early stages, impairment does not appear to be a contributing factor, police said. However, the weather conditions were poor and speed was not ruled out.

Traffic in the area was heavily blocked for hours and drivers were asked to allow extra time and be patient.

“We understand a lot about how frustrated people are when roads are closed,” McLaughlin said. “We are also drivers. Our obligation is to make sure we investigate properly. This particular collision was extremely serious. There was debris and evidence in every lane of westbound traffic. That’s why we have to be very careful, close the road and find out what happened.

The BC Highway Patrol is looking for witnesses or dash cam to what happened.

“In the meantime, we want to avoid more serious collisions,” said Cpl. McLaughlin added.

“It’s extremely important at this time of year that we all slow down well below the speed limit when conditions are this bad.”

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