Four people have been reported killed in four separate vehicle collisions that took place on Sunday on northern Alberta roads. Three of the four crashes happened in the Lac La Biche area and account for two of the reported fatalities.
Police have released few details about a Sunday morning crash that has claimed one life on Highway 881. They say a fatality was recorded in a crash near the kilometre 159 marker of the northern roadway. The latest RCMP information says the highway will be closed on and off through the night as emergency crews try to remove a tractor-trailer unit involved in the multi-vehicle collision. A crash 30 kilometres south of that one that happened just before noon involved a propane tanker truck. That crash also forced the closure of that portion of the highway that links Lac La Biche to Fort McMurray. Police say portions of the highway in that area are now open to one-lane traffic. Police say winter driving conditions have created many areas of black ice along the road.
While police were attending to the crashes on Highway 881, emergency crews were called to a multi-vehicle collision on Hwy 63 north of Wandering River near House River Creek. Boyle RCMP confirmed late Sunday night that one person had been killed in the two-car, head-on crash. A portion of the highway was closed to traffic for most of the day follwing the 12:30 p.m. crash while crews tended to the injured and cleared up the scene of the 1 p.m. crash. The road was opened late Sunday evening. Boyle Mounties say the initial investigation revealed that a southbound pickup truck had lost control and veered sideways into the path of a northbound passenger car. The collision caused the pickup truck to roll onto its side and sent the passenger car towards the east ditch. The 53 year old male driver of the pickup truck was pronounced deceased on scene. The driver of the passenger car was air lifted to hospital with life threatening injuries. Road and weather conditions appear to have contributed to the collision which is still under investigation.
Morinville RCMP are reporting that two people were killed in a collision early Sunday afternoon on Highway 44 near Villeneuve. RCMP are saying that one of the deceased was the lone occupant of a northbound minivan, and the other deceased was a passenger in the southbound SUV. Two other persons in the SUV were transported for medical treatment with undetermined injuries. Alcohol or speed are not considered factors in this crash.
