Vernon

A young motorcyclist was the victim of a fatal crash Wednesday on Highway 6 near Learmouth Road in Coldstream.

Vernon RCMP have disclosed that the victim was a 21-year-old Coldstream man whose name is not yet released pending notification of his next of kin.

Excessive speed is believed to be a contributing factor to the two-vehicle collision between the motorcycle and a pickup truck, says RCMP spokesperson Gordon Molendyk.

The westbound motorcycle travelling at a high rate of speed passed an RCMP car going in the opposite direction, says Molendyk.

The police car turned around and started to pursue the motorcyclist, but the accident occurred before the officer could catch up, Molendyk says.

Police are appealing to people who witnessed the accident to contact them at 250-545-7171.

The highway was closed for a number of hours while police investigated the accident and cleared the wreckage. Traffic was detoured during the closure.