TORONTO -- Police say two people are dead after a multi-vehicle crash in Mississauga on Saturday morning.
Ontario Provincial Police said they are investigating the crash on Highway 401 at Winston Churchill Boulevard, which took place at around 9 a.m.
Const. Kevin Westhead said a 62-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman were pronounced dead at the scene, and a 38-year-old man was transported to hospital in critical condition.
Provincial police initially said that the man died in hospital, but later clarified that he remains in critical condition. Police also initially said that both people who died were male, but late clarified that one woman and one man died.
"There were two people that were pronounced deceased here at the scene, and that third person, all males out of the F-150, that third person was transported to hospital and is still in critical,” Westhead told reporters at the scene.
Police said the preliminary investigation is suggesting that the crash first involved a Ford vehicle and a Lexus vehicle. Westhead said the two vehicles collided with each other, which then sent the Ford through the highway median and into the eastbound lanes where it crashed into an oncoming Dodge.
Other vehicles were also involved “indirectly” in the crash after they were hit by debris from the incident, Westhead said.
The eastbound and westbound lanes, in both directions, are currently closed in the area, and will remain closed possibly into the evening, police said. Officers added that people should expect major delays in the area for at least 24 hours.
"The fast lane and the lane next to it will be closed for at least the next 24 hours for the ministry of transportation to get out here and repair the centre median area," Westhead said.
"That closure could extend longer even possibly the rest of the weekend depending on the length of the initial investigation."
Police initially said that a tractor-trailer was involved in the crash, but later clarified that information was not correct.
"That unfortunately was just a little bit of confusion initially," Westhead said.
-- With files from the Canadian Press
