A Manitoba New Democrat Party MLA has died.
In a statement Thursday night, the Manitoba NDP said Thompson MLA Danielle Adams passed away in a car accident that happened Thursday afternoon near Thompson.
Adams served as the NDP’s critic for Childcare, Housing, Disability and Poverty Matters.
“Danielle’s passing is heartbreaking on so many levels—she was a young, caring mother who wore her heart on her sleeve,” Manitoba NDP leader Wab Kinew said in a statement.
“She was a fierce advocate for her constituents in Thompson and always made northern Manitobans a priority. Our movement and our team will miss her deeply. I know I and my NDP colleagues will honor her life and legacy by continuing to fight hard for the things Danielle stood for.”
In a media release Friday RCMP said the crash happened around 11:20 a.m. on Highway 6, roughly 50 km south of Ponton, Man.
Police say Adams was heading south when her SUV crashed with a northbound semi-truck. They say road conditions were poor at the time of the crash.
The driver of the semi-truck, a 54-year-old man from the RM of Alexander, was not injured.
‘A strong voice for northern Manitoba’
The NDP say Adams was a mother of two boys along with her partner Bill.
On the party’s website, it also says she was an active feminist and an ally with First Nations, Inuit, and Metis peoples, new Canadians, and the LGBTQ2S community.
The statement released Thursday night said Adams was committed to advocating for child care and parents, and also cared deeply about equal access to quality, education, and good jobs in northern Manitoba communities.
Premier Heather Stefanson also sent out a tweet Thursday night, offering her condolences.
Stefanson said Adams will be greatly missed in the Manitoba legislature.
“As the first female elected to represent the constituency of Thompson, she will be remembered as a strong voice for northern Manitoba and a staunch advocate for child care, housing, poverty reduction and supporting Manitobans with disabilities,” Stefanson said in a statement.
Kelvin Goertzen, Manitoba’s minister of intergovernmental affairs, expressed his condolences.
“The Manitoba legislature is united today in grief at the tragic passing of Thompson MLA Danielle Adams,” he said in a post on Twitter.
“To her family, friends, and NDP colleagues, our hearts break for you and we are incredibly sorry for this terrible loss.”
Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont called the news terrible.
“Our deepest condolences to her family and community and NDP caucus colleagues,” he wrote in a Twitter post.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was keeping Adams’ friends and family in his thoughts.
“I’m sending my deepest condolences to the @MBNDP caucus and people of Thompson, Manitoba as they mourn her sudden passing.,” Trudeau said in a tweet.
The family is asking for privacy during this time.
–With files from Shane Gibson and The Canadian Press