SIMI VALLY, Calif. – A California Highway Patrol officer suffered serious injuries in a crash involving Justin Trudeau’s motorcade last night.
It happened just after the prime minister’s speaking engagement in Simi Valley.
Investigators say the officer was riding ahead of Trudeau’s vehicle, trying to stop all traffic, when an S-U-V made a left turn and hit his motorcycle.
WATCH: Trudeau reacts to California motorcade accident
The bumper of a black, 2008 Toyota Highlander was on the ground. The rear passenger corner of the vehicle was mangled, with metal hanging off the body of the car.
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The prime minister’s vehicle was not involved in the collision. Officials say Trudeau is aware of what happened and his staff are in contact with local authorities looking into the incident.
The accident happened just after the motorcade left the Ronald Reagan presidential library where Trudeau had given an address touting the benefits of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Sgt. Kevin Orr with the highway patrol said a motorcycle officer who was part of the motorcade tried to stop a vehicle from making a left turn, but the driver continued on, and the two collided in the intersection.
The road was closed for several hours as investigators combed the scene.
Nivea Bustanante, who lives nearby, said she heard a crash and went outside to check what happened. She said she saw one officer on the ground and another officer pulling over the Toyota in front of her neighbour’s house.
She said she only saw one person taken in an ambulance – the officer involved in the crash. Police say the S-U-V driver and her son were also taken to hospital as a precaution to be checked out.
“The lady in the car, she was just afraid,” Bustanante said.
“She was making a left turn and then she was very scared. She looked very scared.”
Local broadcaster KABC reported that the woman and her son who were in the SUV were also taken to a Los Angeles-area hospital with undetermined injuries.
The Canadian Press has not independently verified the report.
Trudeau will be in Los Angeles for a media event Saturday morning with the city’s mayor before travelling back to the national capital.
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