Rainbow Bridge border remains closed on U.S. Thanksgiving after fiery fatal crash
Posted November 23, 2023 7:03 am.
Last Updated November 23, 2023 9:20 am.
The Rainbow Bridge border crossing between Ontario and Western New York in Niagara Falls remains closed after a horrific crash on Wednesday that left two people dead.
The fiery collision and explosion on the American side of the bridge around 11:30 a.m. prompted an FBI investigation and set off security alerts on both sides of the border, until officials determined it was a local police matter and nothing more.
“There’s no sign of terrorist activity with respect to this crash,” said New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday evening. “We’ve identified this was a local individual, a Western New Yorker.”
Officials say there were no explosive materials found in the wreckage. The case has been turned over to the Niagara Falls Police Department as a traffic investigation.
The driver and passenger in the Bentley involved in the crash were both killed. The identities of the two dead have not been released, but a person briefed on the investigation told The Associated Press they were a husband and wife.
Video released from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows the vehicle speeding into the customs area, striking a curb and flying through the air before crashing into a vehicle checkpoint booth and bursting into flames. Investigators are still trying to determine what caused the collision.
A customs border agent was taken to hospital with minor injuries but they have since been released.
The fallout and closure of the bridge will likely have a major impact on U.S. Thanksgiving travel plans. The Rainbow Bridge is one of four land border crossings connecting the Niagara Region to New York state.
Commercial vehicles are not allowed to use the Rainbow Bridge, making it popular with tourists. About 6,000 vehicles cross the Rainbow Bridge each day, according to the U.S. Federal Highway Administration’s National Bridge Inventory
The other three border crossings, Queenston Lewiston Bridge, the Peace Bridge and the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge, have reopened after the crash prompted a temporary closure of all four on Wednesday afternoon.
There is no word when the Rainbow Bridge will reopen. Travellers can check U.S. border wait times on the Government of Canada website.
With files from The Associated Press and The Canadian Press
