'It's heavy' says OPP constable as northern Ontario sees 8 highway deaths in 10 days
Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2026 2:10 am
There have now been five fatal highway collisions in northern Ontario in 10 days.
The latest incident, which involved two passenger vehicles, was reported Thursday night around 9 p.m. on Highway 11-17 between Highway 130 and Highway 588, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) in Thunder Bay said in a news release issued Friday morning.
A 23-year-old woman from Poplar Hill and a 28-year-old woman from Eabametoong First Nation were pronounced dead, while two other people were transported to hospital with minor injuries.
The other fatal collisions include:
A single-vehicle collision on Monday on the Highway 17 bypass in Sudbury resulted in two people being taken to hospital. A 74-year-old woman from Sault Ste. Marie was later declared dead, according to the Nipissing West OPP.
A collision on Saturday in the northeast on Highway 11 near Highway 631, west of Hearst, between a commercial motor vehicle and a passenger vehicle, which killed three people. The deceased have been identified as Darrell (Jackboy) Taylor, 57, his 36-year-old sister, Raeanne Wesley — both members of Constance Lake First Nation — and Wesley’s partner, 37-year-old Aaron Paypompee, a member of Whitefish Bay First Nation.
A collision on Jan. 29 involving a car and a transport truck on Highway 11-17 near Sistonens Corners, which resulted in the death of a 28-year-old woman from Kakabeka Falls. She was identified by the Thunder City Speedway as Cheyenne Vaillant, a prominent member of the local racing community.
A collision reported on Jan. 27 involving a pick-up truck and a transport truck on Highway 17 between Shabaqua Corners and Upsala. Community members have identified the victim as Peggy Suganaqueb, 58, of Webequie First Nation. She was hospitalized in the intensive care unit and died on Wednesday.
There have been seven highway collisions reported in the northwest region since last Tuesday, at least half of which have involved transport trucks.
The recent string of incidents has prompted calls from several local leaders for the province to improve highway safety, especially along the Highway 11-17 corridor.
Kenora—Kiiwetinoong Conservative MP Eric Melillo provided an emailed statement to CBC News Friday afternoon.
“The twinning of the Trans-Canada highway in our region is critical. It’s important for safety, our regional economy, and Canada’s economic sovereignty. That’s why I have sponsored a local petition calling for the federal government to immediately support this project,” Melillo wrote.
For its part, a spokesperson for Ontario’s ministry of transportation told CBC News in an email that “our government continues to take critical steps to improve road safety across our province.”
These steps include “nearly $600 million to build and repair northern highways, roads and bridges with over $350 million to improve safety and reliability along Highways 11, 17 and the 11-17 corridor specifically,” senior media relations adviser Julia Caslin wrote on Thursday.
Impact on first responders, community members
Const. Joel Eppinghaus of the Thunder Bay OPP said these deaths have taken a toll on first responders.
“It's heavy,” Eppinghaus said. “Some of the officers that respond to these fatalities on our highways, they know the people or they’re family friends and they know the names, and that can be difficult.”
When incidents like these occur, officers involved are encouraged to access the police service's internal support team, he said.
Eppinghaus said the OPP’s speed radars show drivers tend to slow down after a fatal collision has been reported, “and it's unfortunate that a sad event has to cause such a level of correction.”
He’s also noticed people have a tendency to want to find someone to blame for these deaths, “assuming or guessing it's a certain vehicle or a certain driver at fault.”
“I think the important thing to remember here is each one of us has a part in keeping our communities and our highways safe,” Eppinghaus said.
He urges people to obey the rules of the road, drive according to conditions, and to never get behind the wheel while impaired.
“Whether it's happening in Greenstone, Thunder Bay, Red Lake or Kenora across the northwest region, again, it affects us all,” Eppinghaus said.
“Sadly, it brings [the] community together, of course in a tragic way.”
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder- ... -9.7077851
The latest incident, which involved two passenger vehicles, was reported Thursday night around 9 p.m. on Highway 11-17 between Highway 130 and Highway 588, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) in Thunder Bay said in a news release issued Friday morning.
A 23-year-old woman from Poplar Hill and a 28-year-old woman from Eabametoong First Nation were pronounced dead, while two other people were transported to hospital with minor injuries.
The other fatal collisions include:
A single-vehicle collision on Monday on the Highway 17 bypass in Sudbury resulted in two people being taken to hospital. A 74-year-old woman from Sault Ste. Marie was later declared dead, according to the Nipissing West OPP.
A collision on Saturday in the northeast on Highway 11 near Highway 631, west of Hearst, between a commercial motor vehicle and a passenger vehicle, which killed three people. The deceased have been identified as Darrell (Jackboy) Taylor, 57, his 36-year-old sister, Raeanne Wesley — both members of Constance Lake First Nation — and Wesley’s partner, 37-year-old Aaron Paypompee, a member of Whitefish Bay First Nation.
A collision on Jan. 29 involving a car and a transport truck on Highway 11-17 near Sistonens Corners, which resulted in the death of a 28-year-old woman from Kakabeka Falls. She was identified by the Thunder City Speedway as Cheyenne Vaillant, a prominent member of the local racing community.
A collision reported on Jan. 27 involving a pick-up truck and a transport truck on Highway 17 between Shabaqua Corners and Upsala. Community members have identified the victim as Peggy Suganaqueb, 58, of Webequie First Nation. She was hospitalized in the intensive care unit and died on Wednesday.
There have been seven highway collisions reported in the northwest region since last Tuesday, at least half of which have involved transport trucks.
The recent string of incidents has prompted calls from several local leaders for the province to improve highway safety, especially along the Highway 11-17 corridor.
Kenora—Kiiwetinoong Conservative MP Eric Melillo provided an emailed statement to CBC News Friday afternoon.
“The twinning of the Trans-Canada highway in our region is critical. It’s important for safety, our regional economy, and Canada’s economic sovereignty. That’s why I have sponsored a local petition calling for the federal government to immediately support this project,” Melillo wrote.
For its part, a spokesperson for Ontario’s ministry of transportation told CBC News in an email that “our government continues to take critical steps to improve road safety across our province.”
These steps include “nearly $600 million to build and repair northern highways, roads and bridges with over $350 million to improve safety and reliability along Highways 11, 17 and the 11-17 corridor specifically,” senior media relations adviser Julia Caslin wrote on Thursday.
Impact on first responders, community members
Const. Joel Eppinghaus of the Thunder Bay OPP said these deaths have taken a toll on first responders.
“It's heavy,” Eppinghaus said. “Some of the officers that respond to these fatalities on our highways, they know the people or they’re family friends and they know the names, and that can be difficult.”
When incidents like these occur, officers involved are encouraged to access the police service's internal support team, he said.
Eppinghaus said the OPP’s speed radars show drivers tend to slow down after a fatal collision has been reported, “and it's unfortunate that a sad event has to cause such a level of correction.”
He’s also noticed people have a tendency to want to find someone to blame for these deaths, “assuming or guessing it's a certain vehicle or a certain driver at fault.”
“I think the important thing to remember here is each one of us has a part in keeping our communities and our highways safe,” Eppinghaus said.
He urges people to obey the rules of the road, drive according to conditions, and to never get behind the wheel while impaired.
“Whether it's happening in Greenstone, Thunder Bay, Red Lake or Kenora across the northwest region, again, it affects us all,” Eppinghaus said.
“Sadly, it brings [the] community together, of course in a tragic way.”
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder- ... -9.7077851