QUEBEC CITY -- A young man in his 20s was found dead at the wheel of his vehicle several hours after being the victim of a road accident in a remote area of Saint-Clement, in the Lower St. Lawrence region, about two-and-a-half hours east of Quebec City.

According to the Surete du Quebec, the young man was first reported missing in the Saint-Hubert-de-Rivière-du-Loup area in mid-afternoon.

Then, a citizen who took the initiative to search by helicopter spotted a wrecked vehicle on the edge of 8th Rd., in Saint-Clement.

Police officers, who were also conducting a ground search, quickly went to the scene where they discovered the vehicle and its driver who was unfortunately deceased.

It appears that the vehicle had gone off the road and crashed one or more times before coming to a stop.

SQ spokesperson Hélène St-Pierre said an investigator was dispatched to the scene to analyze the causes and circumstances of the accident.

It appears that the victim spent several hours in his vehicle before being found.

-- this report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on July 17, 2021.