Police say 2 dead in pile-up on Highway 40 near Trois-Rivieres, Que.

A Surete du Quebec police car is shown at the scene of a police search in St-Nicolas, a suburb of Levis, Que., on Oct. 12, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

TROIS-RIVIÈRES, Que. -

Two people are dead after a collision involving two cars and two heavy trucks Friday on Highway 40 near Trois-Rivières, in Quebec's Mauricie region, according to police.

The collision happened around 12:30 p.m. on the eastbound lanes in the Pointe-du-Lac sector of Trois-Rivières.

According to the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), at the time of the collision, a vehicle became wedged between the two trucks, partially under one of them. The car "was completely destroyed by the force of the impact," said SQ spokeswoman Éloïse Cossette.

The SQ confirmed the death of at least two occupants of the vehicle in an update early Friday evening.

"The two victims will have to be formally identified. Their ages and sexes cannot be determined at this stage", police said.

As for the second car involved, it was slightly damaged in the crash and its driver suffered no injuries, the SQ said.

Police said the two truck drivers had no apparent injuries, but one was transported to hospital, the SQ said.

An investigator and a specialist in collision scene reconstruction were dispatched to the scene to better understand the causes of the crash.

"Mechanical inspections of the vehicles involved are in progress. According to preliminary information, traffic was moving slowly in this sector at the time of the event," said the SQ in its update.

The Highway 40 eastbound, between exit 187 and the Saint-Jean Boulevard entrance in Trois-Rivières, remained closed indefinitely.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on July 7, 2023.