Three Whitehorse residents were thrown from their Chrysler on Friday during a rollover in the Rabbits Foot Canyon area.
“They were fortunate not to be killed,” said RCMP Sgt. Don Rogers.
No one was wearing a seatbelt.
And alcohol and speed were the main factors, he said.
At about 2:45 a.m., the four-door, white vehicle rolled, ejecting the driver and two passengers.
The 30-year-old male driver was pinned under the car for approximately an hour and a half.
He was treated for fractured ribs and hypothermia and wasn’t released from hospital until Sunday.
The 26-year old male passenger was also treated for fractured ribs and a fractured clavicle. He was released after a few hours on Friday.
The 19-year-old female passenger was treated for soft tissue damage and was kept for 12 hours of surveillance.
Police are not releasing any names until the investigation is complete. Criminal charges are likely.
The road between Rabbits Foot Canyon and Super A Foods was completely closed for three or four hours on Friday, said Rogers.
Then, a single lane was opened.
The highway was completely re-opened by Friday afternoon.
This stretch of the highway, curving through clay cliffs and rocky outcrops, is notoriously dangerous. Fluctuating temperatures caused by the canyon and wetlands tend to make the road conditions unpredictable.
But in this case, road conditions were not the cause, said Rogers.
“In this particular incident, road conditions most likely played a part but certainly the human factors were alcohol consumption and driving too fast,” he said. “If they had been wearing seat belts it would have been a survivable accident with little serious injury.”
Contact Roxanne Stasyszyn at roxannes@yukon-news.com