CHILLIWACK (NEWS1130) – Highway 1 has been re-opened to traffic after a serious crash at the Vedder Canal Bridge this morning.

RCMP say smoke from a bonfire under the bridge caused a distraction, resulting in a rapid slowdown of traffic and an “accordion effect,” as vehicles slammed into one another.

Investigator Tim Shields says people need to drive cautiously. “This appears to have been caused by driver error, and most likely, following too close[ly] or a lack of attention.”

“It’s miraculous that nobody was killed. There were some very significant levels of damage to some of these vehicles and it’s very fortunate that the injuries weren’t more significant than they actually were,” adds Shields, who does not blame the fishermen believed to have started the fire.

Seventeen vehicles, including a Greyhound bus, were involved. Fourteen people have been taken to various hospitals with non life-threatening injuries.

“We don’t have any reports of fatalities,” says Inspector Tim Shields.

One of the bus passengers, Sean, tells us it felt like the bus hit something hard and they suddenly stopped.

“I didn’t even notice the vehicles behind us crashing,” he says. “It was strange, we didn’t hear anything. It must have happened really quickly because we saw the vehicles in front of us and then we looked behind us and realized there’s about 10 cars behind us.”

Greyhound says the bus that was involved in the crash was on its way to Vancouver from Kamloops.

“There were 36 passengers on-board, plus one driver. I can confirm that there were five minor injuries,” says Alex Pedrini with Greyhound.

The company says it is cooperating with police, as well as doing its own independent investigation.

At one point, traffic was closed on Highway 1 in both directions, but the route has been re-opened both ways.

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