6 people sent to hospital after 2 separate rollovers on southeastern Manitoba highway

Six people were taken to hospital, including two in critical condition, after two separate rollovers on a southeastern Manitoba highway in a span of less than 24 hours, Manitoba RCMP say.

The first crash was around 3:30 p.m. on Friday, when five people were in a vehicle going north on Highway 12 near Blumenort at high speed, Manitoba RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Paul Manaigre told CBC News in a Saturday email.

The driver, a 38-year-old woman from Ste. Anne, lost control and the vehicle hit the ditch before rolling. She and her four passengers —  a 13-year-old boy and three men, ages 21, 36 and 74 — were all thrown from the vehicle, Manaigre said.

All five were taken to hospital, he said.

On Friday, a spokesperson for STARS told CBC the air ambulance service took one adult to Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre in critical condition.

Maniagre said Saturday two people involved in the crash remained in critical condition.

Rollover near train tracks

Less than 24 hours later, an SUV also hit the ditch off Highway 12 before rolling, RCMP said.

That crash happened shortly before 9:30 a.m. Saturday near a set of train tracks north of Anola, Manaigre said.

Investigators believe the driver, a 22-year-old man, was heading northbound on Highway 12 when he approached the tracks. The crossing arms were down as a train was approaching.

The driver went around the barrier and drove off-highway over the tracks, hitting the embankment on the other side, said Manaigre.

The driver was in and out of consciousness when officers arrived, and was taken to hospital by STARS, he said.

That rollover also prompted a temporary closure for part of the highway, from Hillside Road 67 N. to Garven Road 66 N. on Saturday morning, but it has since reopened, according to Manitoba 511.

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