A fiery crash along a mountainous British Columbia highway killed an American family of four, the RCMP confirmed Saturday.
The crash happened Friday afternoon along a winding, three-lane stretch of Highway 93 in the province's Kootenay National Park. A tractor-trailer jackknifed and collided with a camper van, which was towing a small SUV.
Initially, investigators didn't know how many people were in the camper, but RCMP Dan Moskaluk said they've now confirmed the victims were a family from Palo Alto, Calif.
They included a 48-year-old father, his 49-year-old common-law wife and their children, a 12-year-old boy and 10-year-old girl.
"Canadian border records indicate that the family had just entered British Columbia while on vacation back on [Thursday]," said Mr. Moskaluk.
The RCMP had earlier reported the crash involved a fuel tanker, but Mr. Moskaluk said it was actually a tractor-trailer pulling two empty flat-deck trailers.
Mr. Moskaluk said it appeared the tractor-trailer was coming down a hill when it crossed the centre line and jackknifed across the highway, pinning the camper van, which was in the oncoming lane, against a concrete post as it caught fire. The driver of the camper van attempted to avoid the tractor-trailer, said Mr. Moskaluk, but wasn't able to prevent the crash.
Investigators still don't know what caused the crash, which happened in a stretch of highway with a 60-kilometre-per-hour speed limit. Roads were wet at the time, Mr. Moskaluk.
The driver of the tractor-trailer was detained and questioned by police, but was released without charge as the investigation continues.