100 injured in highway wrecks in Canadian blizzard

A pickup truck is sandwiched between two vehicles as more than 300 people have been injured following a multi-vehicle crash in snowy conditions Thursday, March 21, 2013 on Highway 2 south of Edmonton, Alberta. A blizzard sweeping across the Canadian plains caused a chain of traffic wrecks involving a bus, semi-trailer trucks and cars south of Edmonton, Alberta, sending about 300 injured travelers to hospitals on Thursday, officials said. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Derek Fildebrandt)

EDMONTON—A blizzard sweeping across the Canadian plains caused a chain of traffic crashes south of Edmonton, Alberta, injuring about 100 travellers, officials said Thursday.

One person was seriously hurt and about 80 were treated at the site, said Kerry Williamson of the Alberta Health Services office. Another official had earlier estimated that 300 people were hurt, four seriously. About 22 people were taken to hospitals in nearby communities, Williamson said.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police closed part of Highway 2, the main road between Edmonton and Calgary, and were directing traffic away from the collision scene, said RCMP Staff Sergeant Grant MacDonald.

He said the crash involved several vehicles, including a large passenger bus and several semi-trailer trucks.