A deadly collision on the Fort McKay access road on November 22, 2015 claimed the lives of two people. According to the RCMP this was just one of several accidents that occurred due to winter weather and the conditions that the vehicles involved in the accident were operating in. At approximately 5:45 pm on November 22 a small sports utility vehicle with two people inside struck a semi trailer which was headed towards the SUV and both of the people in the SUV died as a result of the crash. Police reported that the SUV was headed northbound when the collision occurred, and the semi trailer was traveling southbound. Drugs and alcohol are not suspected, but speed and the weather conditions at the time are both believed to have contributed to the crash according to RCMP Wood Buffalo detachment spokesperson Cst. Ashley Quallie.

After the Fort McKay access road deadly collision, which occurred roughly 2 kilometres from the junction for Highway 63, the road was closed while the scene was investigated and the debris cleared. The road has since been reopened although the RCMP traffic analysis for the crash is still underway. When discussing the accident RCMP Cst. Ashley Quallie stated “Around that time, there were reported about three or four motor vehicle collisions. That is a lot, within an hour. And it had a lot to do with — we were experiencing heavy snow at the time, the temperature, the slippery road conditions. We’d like to remind everybody to remember we’re experiencing winter driving now.” What do you do to make driving in the winter safer?