Two-vehicle collision on highway in east-central Alberta leaves five dead

AMISK, Alta. — People in a tiny east-central Alberta village are grieving after five people from the community, including two children, were killed in a traffic collision. 

RCMP say the crash near Amisk occurred Monday night when the driver and only occupant of a sport-utility vehicle crossed the centre line and hit a car with a family of four inside.

Amisk Mayor Bill Rock said the dead included his friend Tim Carson, Carson’s wife, Michelle, and their two children, a 12-year-old girl and a nine-year-old boy.

“Tim Carson grew up here all of his life. I have known him for over 20 years. He was the DJ at my wedding,” Rock said Tuesday.

“Michelle was training as our postmistress and bank teller at our small ATB branch. She was also the chairperson of our library.”

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The driver of the SUV has not been officially identified but was well known in the community.

Word of the crash circulated quickly among the 204 people who live in Amisk. Everyone hoped it wasn’t true.

Rock said he couldn’t believe it when he heard who had died.

Michelle Carson was to host a library open house Tuesday night, he said. The meeting was cancelled.

Media reports identified the children as Nicole and Shawn Carson.

“I have known the kids since they were born,” Rock said.

A school in the area brought in a crisis response team to help students deal with the deaths of their classmates, said Bob Allen, superintendent of Buffalo Trail Public School Division.

“It is with profound sadness that we announce the death of two of our students as a result of an accident,” Allen said in a statement.

“The school community is close-knit and this tragedy has had a significant impact on many of the students and staff.”

RCMP were looking for witnesses to the crash to help figure out what happened.

Cpl. Ron Bumbry said passersby called in a report a few minutes after the collision.

“Very, very tragic situation,” Bumbry said Tuesday.

“You could imagine the impact that it has that a whole family is now gone from this community.”

Rock said the people of Amisk appreciate all the condolences and words of support from people across Canada.

He said those in the village will do what they can to help the relatives of the deceased and each other to deal with their loss the best they can.

“It is a terrible tragedy,” he said. “We are going to take it one day at a time.”

Amisk is about 230 kilometres southeast of Edmonton.

The Canadian Press