Members of the Huntsville Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and emergency crews responded to the scene of a two-vehicle motor vehicle collision that occurred on Highway 60 near Hidden Valley Road in the Town of Huntsville, resulting in the death of five individuals.
At approximately 11:10 p.m. on November 25th 2023, Huntsville OPP received a call reporting a serious collision involving a westbound Mercedes SUV and an eastbound Ford SUV on Highway 60.
The Mercedes contained four individuals between the ages of 15 and 17 years of age from North York and Richmond Hill area. All four were pronounced deceased, three at the scene and one in hospital (according to a correction by the OPP).
The driver of the Ford was 42-year-old Jessica Lynn Ward (Reid) from Huntsville. The OPP has since indicated in a correction that she was pronounced deceased at the scene of the accident, not after being transported to the hospital. A fundraiser has been started for her children.
Highway 60 remained closed for several hours while police investigated, and members trained in collision reconstruction measured and documented the scene.
No further information to be released at this time.
Anyone who may have witnessed or has video/dash camera footage of the collision and has not spoken with police is asked to contact the Huntsville OPP at 1-888-310-1122. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or submit information online at www.ontariocrimestoppers.ca where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2000.
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Sad and heart wrenching,I came upon the accident as the fire crews arrived,.It was a sight you don’t forget . The entire emergency team well trained will have this disaster on their memories for life.,a firemen had to turn my car around as I was in shock and sadden for all involved.. the roads were dry, no precipitation .its so easy to point fingers, no manner what 5 wonderful lives lost.God bless.
Just sit at the lights at hwy 60 and Grandview anytime of the day and you’ll witness that red light being run all the time, add in there’s little to no police enforcement as soon as the limit rises to 80, I’m surprised there aren’t more accidents.
Time for red light and speed enforcement cameras!!
Also, what 17 year old has a full G license and can drive with unlicensed passengers?
This accident is horrendous, one of the worst on Hwy 60 that I can remember. It is worth remembering a few things, basic things, about driving and maybe now is a good time for us all to review.
I’m as guilty as any of us of speeding (a little), like who does not do around 90 on this road but it is good I think to sort of review what we are actually doing when we drive that good old commute each morning and night.
A little “napkin math” tells us that from Dwight to Huntsville the time saved by various speeds is roughly as follows:
80k speed limit : 26 min
90k : 23 min saved 3
100k : 21 min saved 4
70k : 30 min added 4
60k : 35 min added 9
Very roughly one can see that with 4 0r 5 stoplights to negotiate between downtown and our start point that unless you are very lucky at finding green lights or adept at running orange, the speed you travel at might as well be the speed limit.
Another point about driving is that the “speed limit” is the maximum that the law has decided, in it’s infinite wisdom, to allow you to drive. The “maximum”, and this would be under ideal conditions of weather and traffic. I assume this limit is based on many factors, the road, the type of area, congestion and so on in some way that the authorities feel the speed limit they set is a safe balance.
Speed limits are also not just about you, the road and your speed. They have to allow for the fact that it takes time for someone to enter or exit a road and this process is sort of based on the assumption that when you see a car in the distance on a 80 k road, you have time to pull into the lane and get going. If that car is doing 120, well unless you have very good and calibrated eyes your timing will be off, horns may blow or there may be broken sheet metal.
Of course the length of total trip will make a bigger difference, like if your heading to Winnipeg (and God only know why one would do this in winter) then a few km extra will reduce the monotony of looking at trees and rocks along the way so maybe there is more excuse on a longer trip. Still, one has to always sort of wonder if those few minutes saved really are that important for you to take the risks involved. You need to balance the value of your time, with the value of your life and as we get older we generally get better at making this balance. Young people, young people in expensive and probably powerful cars, generally have a poor record for safety compared to older drivers. This is a sad but true fact.
On the other hand, the kinetic energy increases as the square of the speed and this is what is going to kill you in any accident. This is why head on collisions are usually fatal as one of the comments prior pointed out. This is why two lane roads are dangerous, every time you pass a car, you are just maybe 10 feet from disaster as you pass. It is worth being careful.
The last thing to remember is that a drivers license does not give you the “right” to drive and especially it does not give you the right to reinterpret rules as you see fit.
What that license does is give you the “privilege” to drive. A benefit to you of passing the tests and obeying as best you can, the rules and decorum of driving. You need to share the road.
I think it would be good if every one of us paused for a few minutes and reflected on our own driving habits as a form of respect for the dead people in this accident. I think we can all do a little better and what better time to start than now, as the snow starts and Christmas is just a few weeks away.
I was first on the scene where a collision occurred in the same area about 3 yrs ago in June. Unfortunately, the 60 yr old gentlemen died. The Suv didn’t make the curve and hit his car head on the other two occupants were air lifted to hospital but no other details. I can still hear the sound of the wreck then complete silence. Still unnerving when I drive that stretch.
We live in Hidden Valley. There is nothing wrong with the speed limit. It is just not enforced. If you drive the speed limit, vehicles pass on the double solid, and/or tailgate. Turning left out of Hidden Valley Road, can be tricky, because people are driving much faster than 80km, coming over the hill. Horrific crashes like this are a human problem, not a road or speed limit problem
Terrible accident . Condolences too all the families and friends .
Condolences to the Ward family and the kids families.
Speed limits don’t need reducing the speed is fine it just needs to be reduced if the weather is bad. Common sense should prevail. People think they are invincsible no matter the conditions. Reducing speeds will do nothing only make people make it up somewhere else on the trip is all that crap does.
Speed limits need to be reduced on Highway 60 and then strictly enforced. At high speed, there is little chance to take evasive action in order to avoid a collision. Head-on collisions tend to be the worst in terms of severe injury and death because the speed of both cars is added to each other. How very sad that these lives are now gone–four of them barely begun. RIP.
We were driving last night on Hwy 60 at the time and were detoured around the scene. The roads appeared to be very slippery on that portion of the highway. That I am sure may have been a factor in this very sad accident. My condolences go to the families for their loss.