Carrot River, Sask., in shock after 3 teens die in crash

People in the town of Carrot River, Sask.,are reelingafter three teenage boys were killed on the highway on Sunday.

"The whole town is in a state of shock,"Mayor BobGagnesaid.

The crashinvolvedfour vehiclesat a road worksite on Highway 6 at around 4:20 p.m. CST.

About five kilometres southofSpalding, the car the boys were in, a Chevy Cavalier, wasstopped behinda pickup truck. According to RCMP the Cavalier was slammed from the behind by a semi-trailer.

The crashed killed the boys, aged 14, 15 and 17.The 17-year-old had beendriving the car,RCMPsaid.

In a chain reaction, whenthe Cavalier was hit by the semi, the car hit thepickup, which then struck a construction vehicle (described by RCMP as a pilot vehicle) and a flag manwho was working at the site.

The flag man was airlifted to hospital in Saskatoon with what were described as critical injuries. The driver of the semiand the pickup were taken to hospital in Melfort for treatment of minor injuries.

The boysall went to the same school inCarrot River, a town of about 1,000 people located 180 kilometres east of Prince Albert.

"You have to remember this is a small town,"Gagnesaid. "These three boys, three young energeticgo-getters, football players, drama, in the drama classeswere very involved in the community and if you were not related to them, you knew them."

Highways ministeroffers condolences

The road crews on the site were working on a crack-sealing project, Highways Minister Nancy Heppner said Monday.

"Our thoughts are with the families and friends of the individuals who were involved in this tragic incident,"Heppner said in a news release.

In the same release, the government said the crashhighlights the need for extreme caution in construction zones onhighways and roads.

There was no immediate word onwhat might have caused it.The collision is under investigation by the RCMP, the labour relations ministryand the highways ministry.