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Semi-truck driver charged in highway crash near Oyen, Alta., that killed young boy

Click to play video: 'Grieving family piecing their lives together months after young son’s fatal crash'
Grieving family piecing their lives together months after young son’s fatal crash
WATCH: It's been almost five months since a tragedy near Oyen, Alta. shattered a B.C. family. Jill Croteau reconnected with the family to see how they're doing now – Jan 3, 2020

Months after a tragic crash on an Alberta highway claimed the life of a young boy and injured four others, RCMP have charged a semi-truck driver involved in the collision.

First responders rushed to the scene of a crash on Wednesday, Aug. 7 at 4:30 p.m. to find wreckage involving two semi-trucks and another vehicle.

Ten-year-old Zachary Jeffrey was killed when one of the semis crashed into the back of the family’s minivan while stopped in a construction zone, forcing it ahead to slam into the second semi in front of them, according to RCMP.

The rest of the family — Zachary’s parents Bob and Carla, along with their other two children, Lillian and Gabriel — was injured in the crash.

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The family’s minivan after the crash.
The family’s minivan after the crash. Courtesy: Bob Jeffreys

RCMP said Wednesday the semi-truck driver, 37-year-old Lowell Nathan Dyck, has been charged with several offences in relation to the crash, including:

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  • dangerous driving causing death
  • four counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm
  • criminal negligence causing death
  • four counts of criminal negligence causing bodily harm

Dyck is scheduled to appear in Hanna court on April 22.

RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Laurel Scott said there is a fairly high threshold to lay the charges.

“These are very serious charges,” she said.

“The whole scenario, of course, is a very tragic, fatal scenario and so the investigation, from the outset, has been a very serious and in-depth investigation.

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“It’s not been easy for anybody. It’s not easy for the family and I have no doubt it’s not easy for the truck driver.”

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