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Three young people are dead and a fourth is in hospital with life-threatening injuries after a single-vehicle crash near Hanover on Tuesday.
West Grey Police were called to Concession Road 2 SDR in the area of Allan Park Road at around noon, said Const. Allyson Iles
“When they arrived, there was a vehicle that was engulfed in some smoke. Three youths had been ejected from the vehicle in the accident and one was still trapped inside,” she said.
The four teens all went to John Diefenbaker Senior School in Hanover and were between the ages of 15 and 17, Iles said.
The teen who was trapped in the car was cut out by emergency workers and taken to Hanover District Hospital before being flown by Ornge air ambulance to London.
“It was definitely a heavy day yesterday for all of our first responders,” Iles said.
The crash comes just six months after another crash that killed four teens and their teacher, all from the nearby community of Walkerton.
“There’s no better word for it than devastating,” Iles said. “It’s always a tragedy when there’s youth that lose their lives, but to be hit so hard back-to-back, that’s definitely something that this community is reeling from today.”
The Bluewater District School Board said it was sending a trauma response team to provide grief counselling and other supports.
“The impact of this tragedy is far reaching and extends to other school communities in Bluewater,” school board officials said in a statement.
“For many of our students, staff, and families, we recognize that the shock and sadness they are experiencing may be compounded by recent tragedies that have occurred in some of our other schools. Much like those situations, we know that these students had many close connections and will be sadly missed by large networks of peers and staff.”
Hanover Mayor Sue Paterson said the community will come together to support one another.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families and all those affected. We just cannot begin to imagine the depth of their sorrow,” she said.
“We are sharing thoughts of care and strength with them as they navigate in this time of profound loss.”
