Six people remain in hospital following a rural Ontario crash that killed five children on Friday, police say.
Investigators say an infant, the children’s parents and two older adults believed to be their grandparents were among those hurt after a van carrying 10 people and an SUV collided.
Ontario Provincial Police say the four girls and one boy who were killed were aged 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12. The driver of the SUV, who was the sole occupant, was critically injured.
A family member said on Sunday that they were unable to provide more information as they sort out funeral arrangements and look after the people who remain in hospital.
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Meanwhile, the province’s police force is preparing a new safety blitz hoping to prevent collisions on rural roads.
The initiative was planned far in advance of the deadly Mapleton Township crash, and the timing is a “tragic coincidence,” OPP media relations officer Derek Rogers said in an emailed statement.
The OPP’s “Stop, Look, Live” awareness and enforcement campaign will run through next week and hopes to prevent collisions across West Region, some of which have caused multiple deaths, Rogers said.
From 2021 to 2025, almost 5,000 motor vehicle collisions were recorded, and about a quarter of those collisions were intersection-related, according to the OPP.
Police said they could not yet comment on specifics of the collision, including whether seatbelts were properly used, and it could be days or weeks before more details are made public.
“This is an unimaginable loss,” OPP Superintendent Dwight Thib told reporters at police headquarters in Fergus, Ont. on Saturday, thanking the “Good Samaritans” who helped first responders at the crash scene.
Gregg Davidson, the mayor of Mapleton Township, said there are supports available for the volunteer firefighters and others who witnessed the collision aftermath.
“Our community is strong, and our community is resilient,” Davidson added. “We’ll respond with kindness and love, like we always do.”
The OPP is continuing its investigation to determine the full circumstances surrounding the crash.
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