A fatal crash south of Edmonton near Millet sent several people to hospital and shut down a section of Alberta’s busiest highway Friday afternoon.
The four-vehicle crash happened just before 4 p.m., on the northbound lanes of Highway 2 between Leduc and the turnoff to Wetaskiwin.
One vehicle rolled over the fence running along the highway and was seen in the median dividing the two directions of road.
The other three vehicles were seen on the northbound stretch of road, including one that was heavily damaged and covered by a tarp.
RCMP initially closed both directions of the roadway between Highway 616 and Township Road 482, but said just before 7 p.m. that the southbound had reopened.
Alberta Health Services said EMS responded at 3:43 p.m. to the stretch of highway in Leduc County and transported three patients to hospital in unknown condition.
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STARS Air Ambulance also responded to the crash and airlifted one of those patients, a teenage girl, to the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton.
Another person was declared dead at the scene. RCMP said more information about them could not be released until their family had been notified.
The road closures resulted in lengthy traffic backups, with vehicles being diverted to other routes such as Highway 2A.
Emergency crews from surrounding communities, including Millet, responded to the crash.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.