Two Saskatoon police officers responding to a report of a stolen vehicle were seriously injured after a collision just north of the city on Monday morning.
Police officials said the crash happened around 3:30 a.m. at the intersection of Highway 12 and Township Road 380.
The patrol officers were travelling eastbound when they were involved in a collision with a southbound semi-tractor-trailer.
Both officers were taken to hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries, Saskatoon police Chief Troy Cooper said.
“I spoke with both those officers early this morning and my understanding is that over the coming hours and days, they’ll be assessed, but they’re expected to recover fully,” Cooper said.
“We’re really very grateful to hear that news.”
The driver of the semi was not injured.
Cooper said the officers were responding to a call involving a stolen vehicle when the collision happened.
“My understanding is they weren’t directly involved with that motor vehicle, but that they were positioning themselves to assist another unit,” Cooper said.
He said the investigation is in the early stages and it’s too early to tell what factors were involved in the collision.
“As we review the incident, we’ll be able to tell a little bit more about speeds and other conditions that contributed to the accident,” Cooper said, adding that the force will be co-operating with the RCMP in the investigation.
Dean Pringle, president of the Saskatoon Police Association, said it’s scary any time they hear of an officer being injured on the job.
“It’s a real risk, we’re certainly aware of it, but you’re never prepared to hear that your co-workers got hurt,” Pringle said.
“We know these guys, you kind of worry about them because it’s like a big extended family. So that’s where our thoughts have been all day.”
Cooper said the immediate focus is on the well-being of the officers, one who was more seriously injured than the other.
“They are both under assessment. And I think it’s sort of an hour by hour just to sort of evaluate the extent of them,” Cooper said.
“They were able to talk to me. They were alert. And we’re just hopeful that they recover very quickly and they are expected to recover fully.”
Saskatoon police later tweeted that one officer is now recovering at home while the other remains in hospital.
Cooper said more details into the events leading up to the collision will be released in the coming days as the investigation unfolds.