A tanker truck explosion on March 29 at Dome Creek, about an hour and a half north-west of McBride, closed Highway 16 for several days, as crews worked to extinguish the fire and vent off propane to prevent further mishap. 

The driver of the truck was slightly injured when the tanker truck slid down an embankment. He was taken to hospital in Kamloops overnight, and was released.

The first of the truck’s containers exploded immediately, while the second one slowly burned. A 1.5-kilometre evacuation zone was set up, which did not affect any nearby residences. The highway remained closed for several days as crews from Transport Canada, Canu Tech and LPG Emergency Response Corporation responded to the incident. 

Cpl. Barry Kennedy from the McBride RCMP detachment said the truck plunged down an embankment about 100 yards. Because of the continued fire, traffic investigators were unable to get on scene to determine the cause of the accident as of March 31. Rail traffic was not affected by the evacuation zone, but some travellers saw as much as eight hours added to their trips due to the closure. Crews remained on the scene for the entire incident.

As of March 31, the tanker was still burning, and traffic was slowed to single lane only. On April 2, crews were able to move in and attach a small explosive device to the side of the tanker in order to vent and burn off the remaining propane. A small tear from the initial accident was made larger to allow for the gas to burn off quicker so the truck could be safely removed. The road was re-opened by 6 p.m. that evening. The tanker was then removed from the embankment on Sunday using a crane.