Operation Red Nose volunteers hit by alleged drunk driver New Year's Eve

Two cars being driven by Operation Red Nose volunteers with clients inside of them were hit on New Year's Eve in Kamloops by a truck driver police suspect was intoxicated.

Operation Red Nose is a volunteer organization that offers rides to people who've been drinking over the holiday season. One Red Nose member drives the clients home in their own car, while another Red Nose member follows in a second car to pick them up afterwards.

RCMP spokesperson Jesse O'Donaghey said the investigating officer at the scene detected signs of alcohol intoxication from the 24-year-old Kamloops man driving a black Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck.

The truck driver refused to provide a breath sample and was given a 90-day immediate roadside prohibition and charged with driving without due care and attention.

"It shocked me at first when I heard about it because of course this group of volunteers is doing their best to provide a safe and sober ride home to that group of clients," said RCMP spokesperson Jesse O'Donaghey.

The accident happened just before midnight on the East Trans-Canada Highway near Grand Boulevard. The truck hit the back of a green Subaru Forester and then a blue Ford Focus carrying three Red Nose volunteers and three clients, and then crossed into the oncoming lanes before going off the highway. The force of the impact damaged one car and pushed the other car off the road, said O'Donaghey.

Emergency crews had to extract the driver of the pickup from his truck. 

"They were struck from behind by an [allegedly] impaired driver which is what they're essentially out there to prevent. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured as a result of this entirely preventable collision," O'Donaghey told Daybreak Kamloops' Jenifer Norwell.

Unfortunate ending to 2019 campaign

The collision came at the very end of what had otherwise been a "great campaign" for the 2019 holiday season for Operation Red Nose, said Katie Klassen, the program's Kamloops co-ordinator.

"[It's] just a very weird and unfortunate ending to this long campaign," she said.

"I think it reinforces the importance of people making the right decision and finding an alternative ride home, not driving impaired, driving safely, especially at night ... that's why we're doing what we're doing, to keep the streets safe and there's just no excuse for anybody to drive if they're not able to."

RCMP are asking anyone who witnessed the crash to contact them.