At least 15 killed in ‘mass casualty collision’ on highway in Canada: Police

(NEW YORK) — At least 15 people are dead and 10 injured in a “mass casualty collision” that occurred Thursday on a highway in Canada, Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.

The crash happened on the Trans-Canada Highway between a semi-trailer truck and a bus near the town of Carberry in southwestern Manitoba, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The collision occurred around 11:40 a.m. local time. The semi-trailer was traveling eastbound on Highway 1 when it struck the bus, which was traveling southbound on Highway 5, as the bus crossed the eastbound lanes, police said.

“Immediately it became apparent that this was a mass casualty situation,” Superintendent Rob Lasson, officer in charge of major crime services for Manitoba, told reporters during a press briefing Thursday evening.

The bus was carrying 25 people, the majority of whom were seniors, according to Assistant Commissioner Rob Hill.

Ten people were transported to the hospital with various injuries, Hill said. The local medical examiner was working to confirm the identities of those killed, he said.

“To all those waiting, I can’t imagine how difficult it is not knowing if the person you love the most will be making it home tonight,” Hill said during the press briefing.

Both drivers survived the crash and are in the hospital, authorities said.

Lasson stressed that it was still early but that the incident will be investigated fully.

“We need to be alive to the fact that there could be wrongdoing and if so, there could be a criminal element to this investigation,” Lasson said, calling it a “complex, large investigation.”

The head of the truck company involved in the crash, Day & Ross, said they will fully cooperate with the investigation and “offer any assistance and support that we can.”

“All of us at Day & Ross are heartbroken by the tragic news out of Manitoba this afternoon,” Day & Ross CEO William Doherty said in a statement to CTV. “The thoughts of the entire Day & Ross team are with those who have lost loved ones in this terrible incident, and we are holding out hope that those injured will recover.”

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the news of the crash “incredibly tragic.”

“I’m sending my deepest condolences to those who lost loved ones today, and I’m keeping the injured in my thoughts,” he tweeted. “I cannot imagine the pain those affected are feeling — but Canadians are here for you.”

ABC News’ Aleem Agha and Ellie Kaufman contributed to this report.

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