2 teens dead, 1 young man in critical condition after vehicle submerged in Fraser River

A memorial is growing on a rural road in Chilliwack where two teens were killed and one young man was seriously injured Saturday night when their vehicle flipped into the Fraser River.

RCMP say the incident happened just before 11:30 p.m. in the 46000 block of Ballam Road.

The vehicle collided with a barrier and slid down an embankment into the river, around three metres from the dike.

The vehicle was fully submerged and the teen girls, aged 17 and 18, and a 21-year-old man were trapped inside, police say.

Both girls died at the scene.

The man was airlifted to hospital, where he remains in critical condition.

Their identities have not been released, but all of them are from Chilliwack.

RCMP are investigating the crash to determine whether factors like speed or alcohol were involved.

RCMP Sgt. Krista Vrolyk described the crash as a "life-or-death situation" and said first responders did everything they could to save lives.

"Definitely a tragedy that affects our community. All three youths were residents of Chilliwack," said Vrolyk, spokesperson for the Chilliwack RCMP.

"Fatal collisions are always very difficult but ones involving youth are particularly hard."

Several dozen people visited the site of the collision Saturday afternoon, leaving flowers against a concrete barrier.

Tail lights and other pieces of a vehicle remained, strewn across the side of the road.

Audrionna Thornton, 29, came to the site of the crash Sunday to pay her respects.

Speeding has been an issue on the stretch of road ever since it was paved, she said.

One of the victims was a young mother, she added.

"Just wanted a night kid-free and now she'll never hold or hug her son again," Thornton said.

The same stretch of road was the scene of another similar tragic collision four years ago.

Two teen boys were killed in the same area when their truck plunged into the river around 1 a.m. on Jan. 10, 2016.

Gerritt Niessen and Connor Dash were on their way home from celebrating Dash's 18th birthday when their vehicle slid off Ballam Road and tumbled six metres down an embankment into the river.