FREDERIC SERRE

The 1019 Report

The Sûreté du Québec says icy road conditions are likely the cause of a tragic two-car crash last week in St. Clet that took the life of an 18-year-old woman.

Local residents, meanwhile, say careless driving and speeding have long plagued a stretch of Ste. Julie Road, where the accident happened.

The woman was behind the wheel of a Toyota Yaris, which reportedly hit a stretch of ice in a curve near Route 201 at about 7:30 a.m. on Dec. 10, causing the small car to lose control and smash into an oncoming vehicle. The victim, a resident of Ste. Justine de Newton, was pronounced dead after being transported to a hospital. The driver of the other car – a 36-year-old woman – suffered minor injuries.

In the wake of the fatal accident, local residents turned to social media to express their concerns about the crash and about the stretch of Ste. Julie Road, which they say has been dangerous for a long time.

Suzanne Lacroix says she lived exactly in that area before they enlarged the road. “Every winter, several drivers ended up in the ditch in front of my house as they were driving to Ste. Marthe or, in the other direction, towards St. Clet,” she said. “At the end of the curve, unfortunately there was always a lot of ice and wind, and lots of snow, and in the majority of cases, speeding was the cause.”