Hwy. 401 reopens in Durham after crash that killed woman
Posted October 23, 2023 9:57 am.
Last Updated October 23, 2023 8:33 pm.
Police have reopened all lanes of Highway 401 between Highway 412 and Salem Road in Durham Region after a fatal multi-vehicle crash on Monday morning that closed a stretch of the highway in both directions for the bulk of the day.
The westbound lanes were first to reopen after 5 p.m., with the eastbound lanes getting the all-clear a few hours later.
The crash happened before 9 a.m. when a tractor-trailer rolled over and struck the median of the highway near Lake Ridge Road on the border between Ajax and Whitby.
Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) said one person was taken to hospital with serious injuries, but later died in hospital.
Police have since revealed that the victim was a 25-year-old woman.
CityNews 680 traffic reporter Jordan Kerr was over the scene in a chopper and said it appeared a truck in the eastbound lanes collided with the centre median and got stuck on the guardrail.
The impact of the crash sent debris flying onto both sides of the highway and passenger vehicles in the westbound lanes ended up striking the spillover from the wreckage.
“The truck itself just exploded, there are bits and pieces everywhere,” Kerr says. “The contents of the truck are scattered everywhere. It’s a total mess through here.”
