Chaos on Calgary’s Roads as Van Launches onto Deerfoot Trail
What unfolded Tuesday morning on Deerfoot Trail was something straight out of a movie—only this was real, and it was serious. Around 9 a.m., a violent and unexpected crash disrupted the busy flow of Calgary’s central freeway near Memorial Drive. According to Calgary Police, a van somehow launched off westbound Memorial Drive and came crashing down into northbound Deerfoot Trail traffic. The incident left three people injured—one of them in life-threatening condition at the time.
Just try to picture that: a white Ford Econoline van speeding along Memorial Drive, then veering off, crossing a green space, and literally flying over a concrete barrier, crashing into a lane filled with morning commuters. It’s the kind of thing that makes you wonder how it didn’t result in even more chaos or casualties.
Emergency crews, including multiple EMS units and fire trucks, were on scene almost immediately. The van’s driver, who was ejected from the vehicle during the crash, was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. Thankfully, his condition was later upgraded to serious but stable. Two other individuals, who were in a car the van collided with, also suffered injuries—but they were not life-threatening. Remarkably, both were seen stepping out of their mangled car before being placed on stretchers and taken to hospital.
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Police say this happened in a construction zone, which already has limited space and higher risk. The early investigation points to the van somehow veering off the Memorial Drive westbound lanes, shooting across a grassy slope, and crashing over the barrier separating opposing traffic on Deerfoot. It’s not clear how fast the van was going or why it left the roadway in the first place. What is clear is how narrowly the city avoided a much bigger tragedy.
Sgt. Colin Foster from CPS’s collision reconstruction team commented that it's surprising—and fortunate—that only two vehicles were directly involved, especially given the traffic volume on Deerfoot Trail during morning hours. His words were telling: “The fact that there’s only two vehicles involved is a saving grace, to be honest.”
As investigators continue to piece together the cause, police are asking the public for dashcam footage and eyewitness accounts to better understand how this startling chain of events unfolded.
Deerfoot Trail northbound was closed for much of the day, between 17 Avenue SE and Memorial Drive NE, while Memorial Drive westbound was also shut down from Barlow Trail to 12 Street NE. Traffic chaos followed, with significant delays across Calgary, but by late afternoon, the roads were finally reopened.
It was a crash that left the city shaken and raised important questions about road design, construction safety, and vehicle control. While we’re thankful no lives were lost, this serves as a stark reminder of how quickly things can spiral out of control on the road—and how crucial it is to always stay alert, whether you're behind the wheel or sharing the highway with hundreds of others.
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