2 dead, 9 injured after vehicle strikes pedestrians in Quebec's Lower St. Lawrence region
CTV
Two people are dead and nine injured after a pickup truck hit several pedestrians in downtown Amqui on Monday in the Lower St. Lawrence region of Quebec.
Two people are dead and nine injured after a pickup truck hit several pedestrians in downtown Amqui on Monday in the Lower St. Lawrence region of Quebec.
The driver, a 38-year-old man police say is "from the area," then turned himself in to Quebec provincial police (SQ). He has been arrested for hit-and-run causing death. A witness said victims were spread over a distance of hundreds of metres.
Police say the accused is facing murder charges in connection with the deaths.
"For now, the investigation tends to show that the collision was a voluntary act committed by the suspect," said provincial police spokeswoman Sgt. Helene St-Pierre. The incident happened just after 3 p.m. along St-Benoit Boulevard in Amqui, about 350 kilometres northeast of Quebec City.
The two dead are a man in his 60s and another in his 70s, an SQ spokesman said. Children are among the injured being treated at the Amqui Hospital. Of the nine injured, two are in "serious" condition. The other seven are still being evaluated, said SQ spokeswoman Sgt. Hélène St-Pierre. Five of the injured were transferred to other hospitals, including three to Quebec City, one to Rimouski and one to Montreal. A spokesperson for the regional health board confirmed a code orange had been declared at the Amqui hospital, which normally indicates a disaster situation or one with a high number of casualties. A truck driver told The Canadian Press he saw four or five people lying on the ground spread out over a distance, adding that he saw police perform CPR on one of the victims. "When I arrived, it was already too late," said witness Isabelle Gagne.
Gagne said she began performing CPR on one of the victims, taking turns with a police officer there until a paramedic arrived.
"She said, 'Stop, it’s over,'" Gagne recalled.
