Rush-hour traffic in the East Main Street tunnel in Welland screeched to a halt on Tuesday after a serious crash which sent an elderly woman to hospital in critical condition.


The collision occurred at about 5 p.m. when a pickup truck travelling east lost some the load it was hauling on the roadway. The two vehicles travelling immediately behind the truck, a Mini Cooper and a panel van, stopped safely in time to avoid hitting the items, according to the Ontario Provincial Police.


But the third car, a Jaguar, didn’t stop in time, striking the back of the van and pushing it into the Mini Cooper. The Jaguar’s passenger, a 75-year-old woman, was not wearing her seat belt and was thrown into the dash.

She was rushed to Welland hospital in critical condition. Her condition was not immediately available Wednesday morning.

The male driver of the Jaguar was also taken to hospital for unknown injuries. The driver of the truck was charged with insecure load and the driver of the Jaguar is charged with careless driving.

The accident closed traffic for several hours.

“The important message here is when you’re hauling stuff, no matter where, it has to be secure,” said OPP Const. David Woodford.

An accident in a tunnel in rush-hour makes traffic control no small feat. Welland Fire Chief Denny Prevost was at the scene for several hours helping things return to normal.

“Logistically, it’s difficult,” said Prevost. “There are not too many places to go in a tunnel. There’s only one way in and one way out.”

However, the circumstances didn’t make it anymore difficult for police to reconstruct the accident and lay charges, said Woodford.

As well as skidmarks on the road, police have diagnostic tools to determine how fast a car was travelling.

“You’re supposed to be able to stop safely at all times without hitting the vehicle in front of you,” he said.