An overnight car crash in St. Jean sur Richelieu has claimed the life of a 14-year-old girl, and left a 15-year-old boy in hospital in critical condition.
It happened around 3 a.m. after a dozen teenagers left a party in two cars.
The victim was travelling in a Kia Rio with six other teens on Chemin des Patriotes, in the St. Athanase district, about 50 kilometres southeast of Montreal.
She was riding in the trunk of the small car with another 14-year-old girl, when the driver lost control after trying to pass their friends in another car ahead of them, said St. Jean sur Richelieu police spokesperson Martin Anctil.
The Kia Rio crashed into the other vehicle, which was carrying five teens.
It then went off the road and smashed into several trees before travelling down the bank of the Richelieu River.
The 14-year-old died after she was ejected from the car. All of the other passengers were injured.
"It's tragic," said one teenage boy Sunday afternoon after surveying the scene of the accident.
Area resident Alain Busque told CTV News that the two cars collided right in front of his house.
"We only heard people screaming and yelling and saying that there were one or maybe two people dead," he said.
According to one of the survivors, the cars were travelling at 140 km/h - more than double the posted speed limit.
Busque said he hoped parents would use the tragedy as an opportunity to communicate with their children about the dangers of speeding.
"Keep on telling your kids to slow down on the highways. I know that most of the time they won't listen to you, but it's still worth it to try to make them realize how dangerous the roads are."
Criminal charges
The 17-year-old driver of the Kia Rio, who is in hospital recovering from minor injuries, will face charges of dangerous driving causing death, dangerous driving causing injury, and criminal negligence causing death.
The other driver, also 17, will face charges of dangerous driving causing death, and dangerous driving causing injury.
