Two correctional officers and an offender were killed in a crash during a transfer from the Edmonton Institution for Women, according to Correctional Service of Canada (CSC).
The facility in the city’s west end that accommodates minimum-and medium-security inmates.
The crash happened after 11 a.m. on Thursday at the intersection of Highway 13 and 41, about 270 kilometres southeast of Edmonton near the Alberta-Saskatchewan border.
RCMP say the minivan carrying the officers and the inmate and a Hino box truck with a lone driver were involved in the crash.
The three people in the van, a 25-year-old woman from Winnipeg, a 57-year-old man from Sherwood Park, and a 24-year-old woman from North Battleford died at the scene.
The driver of the box truck was taken to a nearby hospital with minor injuries.
The federal agency posted condolences to social media on Thursday evening, calling it a tragic accident.
“Our colleagues who lost their lives in the line of duty served Canadians with professionalism, dedication and courage,” the post reads.
The Union of Canadian Correctional Officers called the death of the officers an unimaginable tragedy.
The cause of the crash is under investigation.
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