A OPP vehicle parked on the shoulder of Hwy. 402 near Longwoods Rd.  (Photo courtesy of the OPP)A OPP vehicle parked on the shoulder of Hwy. 402 near Longwoods Rd. (Photo courtesy of the OPP)
London

'Obey The Signs, They're There For A Reason'

Provincial police are pleading with drivers to heed the highway closures signs as the closure on Hwy. 402 moves into its third day.

Hwy. 402 between Hwy. 401 in London and Nauvoo Rd. in Lambton County has been closed since mid-afternoon Thursday following multiple crashes in whiteout conditions.  However, that hasn't stopped some drivers from ignoring the signs and entering the highway.

"We've charged two transport truck drivers today with driving on a closed road," OPP Constable Max Gomez told Blackburn News on Friday. "Even after all of the messaging and public announcements, the signs, the barrels and the cones, they decided to enter Hwy. 402 and they were quickly stopped."

He said there was also a passenger vehicle that ignored the road closure signs and drove onto the highway. While the vehicle was on the 402, the driver lost control and entered the ditch. While no one was injured, Gomez said the crash diverted police resources from other duties which could have helped to speed up the reopening of the highway.

"Obey the signs, they're there for a reason... At the end of the day, what matters is safety -- your safety, [and] the safety of officers/first responders on the highway," he said. "We don't want the highway closed, but if we have to attend to vehicles that are on the 402 when they shouldn't be, it's going to delay the opening."

During the day on Friday, the area continued to get hammered by lake-effect snow squalls, which resulted in several collisions on secondary routes. None of the crashes resulted in serious injuries.

As of 8pm on Friday, police haven't indicated when they intend to reopen the highway.

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