A motorcyclist was airlifted to a hospital in Vancouver after a crash on the old Island Highway in front of Country Club Centre.

Emergency crews were called to the crash scene a little after 3 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 24, after a motorcycle and two other vehicles were involved in a collision.

Capt. Bryun Ashlie of Nanaimo Fire Rescue said it appeared one vehicle turned left in front of the motorcycle that was travelling northbound on the old Island Highway. The motorcycle struck one car in the rear quarter panel before hitting the second car. The bike then hit the centre median and came to rest in the southbound lanes of the highway. 

"The gentleman driving the motorcycle is in pretty serious condition, a lot of broken bones," Ashlie said. "He's being flown to Vancouver right now." 

The occupants of the two other vehicles involved in the crash weren't injured. 

Both directions of the highway were closed, but tow trucks were on scene clearing the roadway shortly after 4 p.m.

According to ICBC data, there were six crashes at the intersection of the old Island Highway and 107th Street in 2023 and 26 over the five-year period from 2019-2023.