Advertisement

Toronto man identified as victim of fatal crash on Hwy. 401 near Prescott

Click to play video: 'OPP identify 55-year-old Toronto man as victim of fatal crash on the 401 near Prescott'
OPP identify 55-year-old Toronto man as victim of fatal crash on the 401 near Prescott
Police are still investigating the cause of a fatal crash near Prescott. Three trucks including a tanker full of petroleum crashed into each other Thursday afternoon – May 4, 2018

OPP have identified the victim of a fatal three-vehicle crash on Thursday afternoon. Police say a 55-year-old man from Toronto was pronounced dead at the scene.

Two other male drivers, a 38-year-old and 58-year-old, suffered from minor injuries.

The Grenville County OPP shut down Highway 401 in both directions between Prescott and Maitland on May 3.

The OPP are currently investigating a motor vehicle collision involving two transports and one tanker-truck carrying petroleum. They say the crash happened somewhere around 1:30 p.m. on Thursday in the westbound lane.

OPP say the tanker carrying petroleum was ruptured spilling fuel all over the highway. The ordeal forced several people out of their homes as police were concerned about the potential danger of fuel sparking when they pried apart the vehicles.

Story continues below advertisement
Google Maps shows where Hwy. 401 is blocked after a major collision on Thursday involving several trucks. At least one person has died. Google Maps

Police say the cleanup job took until well past midnight, due to the gas spill.

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

The surrounding areas were gridlocked with extremely heavy traffic, trapping drivers on side roads for hours.

This deadly crash comes on the heels of another major crash in the same area of Highway 401 on Wednesday, which happened in the eastbound lane.

A photo of the damage of Wednesday’s crash on Highway 401 between Blue Church Road and Merwin Lane in the eastbound lane. On Thursday, a deadly crash happened in the same area in the westbound lane. Anonymous

On May 2 around 6 p.m., the Grenville County OPP responded to a motor-vehicle collision on Highway 401, between Blue Church Road and Merwin Lane in Augusta Township.

Story continues below advertisement

OPP say a tractor-trailer carrying a flatbed load of steel rolls lost control at the construction site and struck a rock bed, located on the south ditch.

The impact of this collision caused the steel load to come loose and strike another transport, which caused the second transport to collide with two passenger cars.

The driver of the transport, carrying steel, was transported by Air ORNGE with serious injuries.

OPP say the second transport driver was transported to hospital with minor injuries, and the two passenger vehicle drivers did not sustain any injuries.

Two accidents in two days in the same stretch of highway

The Mayor of Prescott Brett Todd commented on both Thursday’s and Wednesday’s collisions, noting that both collisions occurred in an area of the highway that was under construction.

Todd first commented on Thursday’s tragedy, sending his condolences to the unidentified victim’s family.

He then pointed to both crashes as urgent examples as to why a third-lane expansion was needed in the area.

Story continues below advertisement

He said he, along with other members of the Eastern Ontario Mayors Caucus, has been calling for a three-lane expansion for stretches of Highway 401 that only have two lanes.

“We need the province to take the three-lane expansion seriously, even if it’s just passing lanes to relieve some of the stress here,” said Todd.

The mayor wanted to ensure that he was not using this death to get political, but he believes these collisions are examples of the dangers that come with not allowing enough space on eastern Ontario’s main artery.

Todd said that the construction on Highway 401 might have had something to do with both crashes.

“It seems more than coincidental that we have these incidents at areas where the traffic narrows to one lane.”

Sponsored content

AdChoices