Married couple, brothers mourned after fatal Labrador crash

Tributes are pouring in from several communities in Newfoundland and Labrador for four people who were killed in a head-on collision yesterday on the Trans-Labrador Highway.

A husband and wife travelling south and a pair of brothers heading north all died after their trucks collided on a foggy section of Route 510, roughly sevenkilometres north of Red Bay.

Melvin and Estelle Alyward of Labrador City were driving to Port au Choix, Newfoundland to visit family.

• 4 confirmed dead in crash on Trans-Labrador Highway

Richie and Camille Bolger were heading out from West St. Modeste to Mary's Harbour, where they were working on a construction project.

'Devastating loss'

The Alywards, both in their mid-forties, were raised in Port au Choix and visited regularly, according to Deputy Mayor Susan White.

"Estelle and Melvin were very much back and forth," White said, "constantly in our community."

Ron Thomas, president of the steelworkers union in Labrador City, said Melvin Alyward worked for a blasting company at the IOC mine for about 10 years. Thomas says the flags at the union office are flying at half-mast today in memory of the couple.

He called the deaths a "devastating loss for the community" and expressed condolences to the family. The couple had one son, a 17-year-old who graduated from high school earlier this year.

"If you met her, you know her, because she made sure you didn't forget who she was," said Labrador City Mayor Wayne Button of Estelle Alyward.

"She was just so vibrant."

Brothers in business

Camille and Richie Bolger worked together as roofers. They took jobs all over Southern Labrador, mostly shingling roofs and installing eavestroughs.

"Heights didn't bother them," West St. Modeste Mayor Agnes Pike said.

"They were excellent roofers."

Richie, 43, and Camille, 45, were both fathers and the only sons in their family.

Pike said Camille lived in Pines Cove on the Northern Peninsula, but was in West St. Modeste regularly for work.

Richie lived next door to the mayor.

"It's a terrible loss. It's hard to deal with in small communities," said Pike, who estimates about 100 people live in her community.

Poor conditions

The RCMP told CBC Thursday traffic analysts would investigate the cause of the crash. There was thick fog in the area at the time and police say that may have been a factor.

"What happens after you leave Red Bay, you go up on the higher hills," Pike said of the stretch of road where the crash happened.

"As you go up the fog gets thicker and heavier."

Labrador City Mayor Wayne Button said he worries about all drivers who make the long trip over the the Trans-Labrador Highway.

It's more than 1,100 kilometres from Labrador City to Blanc Sablon, where travellers catch the ferry to Newfoundland. Most of the drive is through remote parts of Labrador.

"There's still a lot of areas there where there isn't any cell service," Button said.

"We all know that when we go over that road, even in the best conditions, our life is at risk."

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