Amqui remembers victims of truck attack one year later

Commemorations are being held in Amqui to mark the first anniversary of a deadly attack that killed three people. (LA PRESSE CANADIENNE/Jacques Boissinot)

Commemorations are being held this Wednesday in Amqui, Bas-Saint-Laurent, one year after a driver deliberately plowed into eleven pedestrians, killing three and injuring eight.

The driver of the truck, a local resident in his late 30s, was arrested shortly after.

He remains in custody pending further legal proceedings.

The mayor of Amqui, Sylvie Blanchette, is asking residents to observe a minute's silence at 3:05 p.m., the time the attack began a year earlier.

The public will then be invited to gather at 6 p.m. at Parc Pierre-et-Maurice-Gagné, located downtown along the Matapédia River.

Speeches will be given by Blanchette, Matane MNA Pascal Bérubé, Avignon--La Mitis--Matane--Matapédia MP Kristina Michaud and Matapédia MRC prefect Chantale Lavoie.

At 6:30 p.m., a citizens' march is set to take place on the sidewalk of Saint-Benoît Ouest Boulevard, where the victims were struck.

An hour later, at 7:30 p.m., a mass is expected to be celebrated at the Amqui church.

Gérald Charest, Jean Lafrenière and Simon-Guillaume Bourget lost their lives in the tragedy.

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on March 13, 2024.