By Jill Sperling

Mother thankful her family is alive after crash with RCMP cruiser

Oct 1, 2016 | 11:08 AM

KAMLOOPS — A Cache Creek woman whose family van was struck by an RCMP cruiser in downtown Kamloops Friday afternoon says she’s relieved that none of her children were seriously injured. 

Karen Harris says she and her husband were taking their five children out to eat after their dentist appointments when they went through a green light at the intersection of 6 Avenue and Seymour St. 

It was at that point Harris, who was sitting in the passenger seat, heard a siren. 

“I turned over to my right to look to see where the siren was coming from and just as I did that that’s when the cop car came into my passenger side door,” Harris explained, “and he was going fast, like it was too late, we couldn’t do anything, like there’s no way he could have slowed down or we could have swerved out of the way.” 

Harris says the officer immediately went to the van to make sure everyone was alright. 

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“I said, ‘just get my kids out, I just want to make sure my kids are OK,’ they were my main concern,” Harris recalled. 

She says she and one of her sons were taken to hospital to be checked over after taking the brunt of the hit. Fortunately, none of the injuries were life-threatening. 

“I’m thankful for our van,” Harris said. “I think it did its job and protected us and everybody is OK. It could have been a lot worse. I’m thankful that we’re all alive and well.”

Despite feeling he was driving too fast, Harris says she has no ill will toward the officer who hit her family. 

RCMP continue to investigate the crash and say the officer involved was not seriously injured.