A man is dead and two others are in hospital after a head-on collision between a semi truck and a pickup truck south of Snow Lake Wednesday.
The accident took place around 6 a.m. May 19, on Highway 39 just west of the junction between the road and Highway 392 leading to Snow Lake. RCMP officers at the Snow Lake detachment were alerted to the accident at about 6:20 a.m. and arrived on the scene not long after, finding the pickup on fire and both vehicles off the road.
According to an RCMP news release on the wreck, the semi was in the south ditch, while the pickup was found in the north ditch, having caught fire and been, in the wording of Manitoba RCMP, "completely burned." The driver of the semi, identified as a 49-year-old man from Flin Flon, was still inside the truck when officers arrived. He was extricated from the truck by emergency services and was taken to hospital, later being flown to Saskatoon for further treatment.
The two men who were inside the pickup - a 33-year-old driver from Brandon and a 26-year-old passenger from Brookdale, both males - were also found at the scene. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, while the passenger sustained serious injuries. After being treated at the scene by emergency medical personnel, the passenger was later flown to Winnipeg for further treatment.
Highway 39 was closed for several hours May 19 following the collision while officers investigated the crash. RCMP now believe the accident was caused by the pickup, which was heading eastbound on Highway 39, entered the westbound lane, right in the path of the semi. Weather conditions at the time of the collision were described by RCMP as "raining and slightly foggy".
"From the initial investigation, it appears the semi was travelling eastbound on Highway 39 when the westbound pickup entered the eastbound lane. The semi driver attempted to avoid the collision, ending up in the ditch. However, the vehicles still collided," reads a Manitoba RCMP news release.
An investigation into the accident is ongoing, with assistance from an RCMP forensic collision reconstructionist and the provincial Criminal Collision Investigative Team. No charges or penalties have been laid in the crash.
