MacMullan was in the front passenger seat of a grey Pontiac Grand Am that was heading north when the vehicle went out of control, swerved across the southbound lanes and smashed into the rockface just past the Bamberton turnoff. The crash happened about 8 p.m., in heavy rain.
B.C. Ambulance paramedics, police and firefighters rushed to the scene, where MacMullan was confirmed dead.
The 45-year-old driver, a man from Victoria, and a 60-year-old female passenger from Esquimalt were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Both have since been released.
RCMP South Island Traffic Services and Shawnigan Lake RCMP continue to investigate and are looking into whether the driver was impaired by drugs.
The B.C. Coroners Service is also investigating.
Investigators would not confirm whether they have interviewed the vehicle’s surviving occupants, but spokesman Cpl. Darren Lagan said police have “taken multiple statements from witnesses in relation to what they observed.”
