An 18-year-old Whitehorse woman is dead after a two-vehicle collision Monday evening. Jessica Behan was killed after the car she was travelling in collided with a truck.
The accident happened at around 6:20 p.m. on Monday near the intersection of Dawson Road and the Alaska Highway south of the city. Behan was the sole passenger in a Dodge car that was travelling southbound along the highway. It collided with a northbound Dodge truck.
When police arrived at the scene, the 20-year-old male driver of the truck had already exited his vehicle. He was the only one in the truck. The Whitehorse Fire Department had to remove Behan and the driver, a 17-year-old man, from the car. Behan was found dead at the scene.
Both drivers were transported to the Whitehorse General Hospital. The driver of the truck was treated and then released. The driver of the car remains in stable condition.
The RCMP is continuing to investigate the incident. But they have determined alcohol was not involved. Police don’t know if speeding was a factor, or if the passengers were wearing seatbelts, said Const. Christine Grant with the Whitehorse detachment. The roads were in fairly good winter condition, she said.
As far as she knows, this is the first death in a motor vehicle accident this year, said Grant.