Two dead, nine injured after being struck by van in Quebec

Two people were killed and nine injured after being struck by a van on Monday in the Canadian town of Amqui, Quebec, provincial police said.

Police spokeswoman Hélène St-Pierre said the circumstances of the collision were still being investigated and the driver of the van, a 38-year-old man, was under arrest.

Police were called around 3 p.m. local time about reports of a collision between a van and pedestrians walking along a road in Amqui, located about 650 kilometers (400 miles) north-east of Montreal.

A man in his 70s and another man in his 60s were killed, St-Pierre said.

Two of the victims were in a serious condition.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Twitter that his heart was with the people of Amqui.

“As we learn more about the tragic events that have taken place, I’m keeping everyone affected in my thoughts,” he said.

The incident comes a month after a bus driver was charged with murder after ramming his vehicle into a daycare center in a Montreal suburb, killing two children.

Canadian Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino tweeted that he was “shocked and saddened” by the events and called the incident a “horrific act of violence”.