5-car collision near Barrie leaves one dead

Police say that one person is dead after a five-car crash on County Road 53 near Barrie Ont.

Two others were critically injured in the collision on Monday.

Emergency crews were called to the scene of the crash in Springwater Township, just northwest of Barrie, in the early afternoon.

Huronia West OPP crews, Springwater fire crew and Simcoe County paramedics responded, closing County Road 53, also known as Wilson Road, between Sunnidale and Carson Roads for four hours for an investigation.

Heavy snowfall made for treacherous driving conditions as a snow squall warning remained in effect Monday.

Sgt. Peter Leon, OPP Central West media relations officer, said investigators will be looking at weather as a possible factor in the crash.

He said, "These areas, as you can appreciate, are adjacent to some very wide open farm fields and we've had some very strong winds that have propelled the snow through the snow squalls."

"There is a route that people would take perhaps if they were heading in that direction."

"As you can appreciate with it being Christmas Day, we would have had a significant amount of vehicular traffic on the roadways at this point in the day."

He said officers in the area have already responded to several calls for collisions.

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