Kokihara Between Merritt and Hope Closed After Police Incident

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Highway 5 (Kokihara) is closed between Hope and Merritt due to an ongoing police incident.

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RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Chris Mansoor said no public or commercial traffic will be allowed on the highway until further notice.

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“We need to anticipate delays and plan alternative routes in the hours leading up to this incident,” Mansoor said at 4 p.m. Thursday.

Mansoor also asked members of the public in the area not to post police actions online via social media.

“A large number of police resources from the surrounding area are being sent to the Juliet Bridge area just south of Merritt near the Coquihala Summit,” Mansoor said.

According to DriveBC, the highway is blocked from 6 kilometers north of Hope to 1 kilometer south of Merritt.

A detour from Hope to Merritt is to take Hwy 3 to Princeton and go north on Hwy 5A.

It will be updated at 20:00