The Sea to Sky Highway reopened at approximately 2 a.m. on July 6, 2026, after a vehicle incident shut down the road for eight hours, leaving thousands of motorists stranded overnight.
Incident and Closure
The crash occurred near Deeks Creek Bridge, north of Lions Bay, at around 6 p.m. on Sunday, July 5, according to DriveBC. Both directions of Highway 99 were closed, and police launched a lengthy investigation. The RCMP has not yet commented on the cause of the incident.
DriveBC initially estimated the highway would reopen between 2:30 a.m. and 5 a.m., but the road was cleared by 2 a.m. However, traffic remained heavy for hours afterward, especially southbound through the Furry Creek area.
Motorists Stranded
Brittany Michalchuk, a driver heading home from Whistler to Vancouver, described the scene as “apocalyptic.” She said, “Traffic was just not budging. There’s RVs and buses. There must have been thousands of us stuck in traffic.”
Michalchuk put on rollerblades and traveled about 11 kilometers to get closer to the crash site. She saw people with sleeping bags and pillows sleeping on the roadside, picnics set up, vehicles running out of gas, and others jumping cars. Some motorists ran out of food and water.
Police Response
Police blocked off the area near the crash, where Michalchuk spotted an RV sitting motionless facing north. An officer told her the wait could be several hours and advised people to either wait in their vehicles or head back to Squamish or Whistler.
As darkness fell, Michalchuk hitched a ride back from a vehicle that turned around. She waited in her car until 11 p.m., then gave up and drove back to Whistler for the night. “We were all getting frustrated, hungry and tired,” she said.
Aftermath
DriveBC confirmed the incident was cleared by early Monday, but the backlog took hours to dissipate. Postmedia has reached out to Squamish RCMP for further details. The highway is now fully open, but drivers are advised to expect residual delays.
