Mom and Dads friend Annette had been in an accident, she drives a green van, and it turned out to be her that was killed. Their friend Jackie and her daughter were apparently in the car with Annette and weren't wearing their seat belts, my Dad informed us. (My Mom then proceeded to yell at Matthew because lately he hasnt been wearing his. I guess she hoped to strike some kind of fear into him. But hes 15, what fear could she instill on someone who thinks they are invincible?)
Dad explained that he heard that the person who was thrown from the vehicle had to be scraped off of the road, they couldn't tell at first whether it was a male or a female.
After Dad had told us the story my response was, "great we have to go to another funeral, or two."
My response was not in anger, but in bitterness because another friend of ours has been at his worst for a while now and has already tried to committ suicide. Mom received a call early one morning and made Dad rush over to take him to the hospital.
Hasnt the past few weeks been grand?
Story from the TorontoStar.
"Woman dies in minivan collision on 401
Tragic start to long weekend
Drivers fume over border delays
EMILY MATHIEU AND PETER EDWARDS
STAFF REPORTERS
A newspaper delivery driver was killed in a two-vehicle accident on Highway 401 yesterday near Port Hope at the start of the busy holiday weekend.
Eastbound lanes were closed for six hours after a green Chevrolet Astro minivan "wobbled and lost control" and clipped another eastbound vehicle at about 9 a.m., said Ontario Provincial Police Sergeant Dale Gear of the Northumberland detachment.
The minivan rolled over and ended up on its side, Gear said.
Annette Tripp, 40, of Port Hope was dead on the scene.
Two passengers in the minivan, Lauren McCormack, 13, and her mother, Jacqueline McCormack, 48, both of Port Hope, were thrown from the vehicle. The pair, who police say were not wearing seat belts, was airlifted from the scene just east of Port Hope. The teenager was taken to Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children. Her mother was sent to Sunnybrook hospital.
The driver of the other vehicle, Andrew Chan, 38, of Toronto, was not injured.
Copies of yesterday's edition of the Northumberland News that were being transported in the minivan were scattered along a half-kilometre stretch of highway. Police diverted cars on to local roads, creating an estimated two-hour delay for travellers, Gear said.Other serious traffic accidents across Ontario yesterday added to the toll for commuters and motorists trying to get the jump on the long holiday weekend.
Six motorists were hospitalized after a minivan and a car collided near the village of Port Sydney, 20 kilometres south of Huntsville, on Highway 11. The northbound lanes of the highway were closed for four hours shortly after 10 a.m.
One person was killed in an accident near London just before 9 a.m., when a car hit a concrete bridge and caught fire.
Meanwhile, traffic tie-ups and work slowdowns from a labour dispute between the federal government and Canadian customs agents created havoc on bridges spanning the Canada-U.S. border along the Niagara River. Delays ranged up to an hour on the downriver Queenston-Lewiston Bridge, the Rainbow Bridge at Niagara Falls and the Peace Bridge between Fort Erie and Buffalo.
"I wasn't aware there was (going to be) such a delay," a frustrated Elizabeth Simon, 37, of New Jersey said at a duty-free shop in Niagara Falls, N.Y., as she and her husband George, 37, braced themselves for the drive to Toronto for Caribana.
Hundreds of GO Transit passengers were left stranded at Guildwood station in Scarborough last night after a pedestrian was struck and killed by a commuter train at Rouge Hill station, forcing a suspension of train service. Police said the fatality was a suicide. A following eastbound train was stopped at Guildwood about 6 p.m., leaving passengers scrambling to find ways to get home."
Story from Northumberland News.
"
News delivery driver killed in crash
PORT HOPE - A Northumberland News delivery driver was killed in a two-vehicle accident on Hwy. 401 this morning.
Shortly before 9 a.m. Northumberland OPP were called to the eastbound lanes of Hwy. 401 just outside of Port Hope. A green Chevrolet Astro minivan had "wobbled and lost control", clipped another eastbound vehicle, and then rolled, eventually coming to a stop on its left side, says Sergeant Dale Gear, Northumberland OPP.
"Why there was a wobble or loss of control we do not know yet. We still do not have a good witness to the accident," adds Sgt. Gear.
Two passengers in the minivan, a 13-year-old girl and a 48-year-old woman, were thrown from the minivan and injured, police said. The teenager was airlifted to Northumberland Hills Hospital with serious back injuries and the 48-year-old woman was airlifted to Sunnybrook Hospital with serious leg injuries.
The female driver of the minivan was confirmed dead at the scene. Police did not release her identity, pending notification of next of kin.
The driver of the other vehicle was not injured, reports Sgt. Gear.
"The other two occupants (of the minivan) are lucky they are alive," says Sgt. Gear. "We are still piecing things together."
The accident scene, littered with copies of Friday's Northumberland News, spanned 500 metres of the highway and backed up traffic for several kilometres. The eastbound lanes of Hwy. 401 near Port Hope will be closed until 3 p.m. when police expect to have completed their investigation. "
