A westbound mini-van drove off the roadway and into a tree on Sooke Road near Connie Road around 11 a.m., Oct. 18.  The incident occured just metres from the Metchosin border.

According to Sooke fire Chief Steve Sorensen, the driver and a single passenger, both in their 30s, were taken to Victoria General via ambulance with non-life threatening injuries.

He said the vehicle was severely damaged, with lots of leaking fluid and a split gas tank.

"The vehicle is trashed," Sorensen said. "The seat belts and airbags saved them."

A similar car crash in the same area, involving the same tree, claimed the life of an 80-year-old man two months ago.

The man was driving a van, with his wife as a passenger, when he lost control of the vehicle and veered off the highway into the tree.

The accident occurred on Aug. 8 and the man passed away about a week later in hospital.