At least 1 dead, 7 injured in collisions during weekend ice storm

Ontario Provincial Police have reported two major collisions and dozens of minor ones Saturday as snow and freezing rain pelts most of eastern Ontario. 

Environment Canada became increasingly sure on Thursday and Friday that the region would be hit with a major ice storm over the weekend.

The weather agency initially expected the freezing rain to turn into rain by Sunday, but the agency has since extended many of its freezing rain warnings into Sunday.

As of 2 p.m. Saturday, they covered all of eastern Ontario and western Quebec, including Ottawa-Gatineau.

Environment Canada has said that communities close to Lake Ontario, including Kingston and Belleville, would likely be hit the hardest by the storm.

Provincial police responded to around 94 collisions from midnight Friday until Saturday at noon, according to a post on X in which they urged the public not to travel unnecessarily.

While most of the collisions Saturday morning resulted in "no injuries or minor injuries," two have left people critically injured or dead.

At least 7 injured in crash near Spencerville

At least seven people were injured and taken to hospital after a three-vehicle crash on Highway 416 overnight, according to both OPP and the Leeds Grenville Paramedic Service.

Two of the victims were in critical condition.

The crash happened just before midnight Friday near Spencerville, Ont., around 65 kilometres south of downtown Ottawa.

According to police, a northbound vehicle had rolled into the ditch and other people parked their own vehicles by the roadside to help.

A second vehicle then struck one of the parked vehicles and ended up in the ditch itself, OPP said.

A Leeds Grenville Paramedic Service spokesperson told CBC that seven people were taken to hospital with injuries. Four ended up at the trauma centre at The Ottawa Hospital's Civic campus, the spokesperson said, with two in critical condition and two in severe condition.

Three others were taken to the Kemptville District Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, according to the spokesperson.

Police told CBC that eight people in total were hospitalized after the collision, but neither they nor paramedics could explain why their counts differed.

The northbound lanes of Highway 416 were closed between midnight and around 2 p.m. on Saturday for the police investigation.

Highway 138 collision turns fatal

A woman also died in a three-vehicle collision on Highway 138 in the Township of North Stormont, according to OPP.

The collision happened just before 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, police said, and involved one car and two tractor-trailers, each with one person inside.

The woman who died was a 33-year-old from North Glengarry Township, according to police, who was pronounced dead at the scene. Police also said one of the tractor-trailer drivers suffered minor injuries and was taken to hospital.

Highway 138 was closed in both directions between MacNeil Road/County Road 22 and County Road 15 starting at 11 a.m. on Saturday. Police reported early Sunday morning that the highway had reopened overnight.

The scene is around 60 kilometres southeast of downtown Ottawa.