A head-on collision on Hwy. 148 near the intersection with chemin Terry Fox in the Municipality of Pontiac on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 13) sent several people to hospital, some with serious injuries. 

According to MRC des Collines police, a 35-year-old woman from Pontiac was driving eastbound in a Ford pickup truck at around 4:10 p.m. and veered into the opposite lane, clipping a Ford SUV towing a trailer and striking a Lincoln SUV. The Lincoln contained a 7-year-old child and a 58-year-old couple, all from Pontiac. 

“The man behind the wheel [of the Lincoln] was trapped for nearly an hour while the Pontiac Fire Department extricated him using the Jaws of Life,” des Collines police Lt. Josée Forest wrote in a French statement. “He was transported to [the Hull Hospital] for treatment of serious injuries, which fortunately are not life-threatening. The child and woman were also taken to [hospital] as a precaution but had no apparent injuries.”

The statement notes that the driver of the Ford truck also sustained serious injuries, and had a blood sample taken at the hospital, as there “was reason to believe she was under the influence of alcohol and drugs.” Forest said that the results of the test will not be known for several weeks. 

Forest added that first responders in the MRC dealt with 20 accidents and vehicles going in the ditch over the course of Saturday, due to the difficult road conditions caused by that day’s snowfall.