TOWN OF CANTON, New York (WWNY) – Sunday’s deadly crash involving an Amish buggy near Canton drew a response of 15 ambulances and 10 fire departments.
“I have not seen a buggy accident or accident in general myself personally with this number of people involved,” said St. Lawrence County Director of Emergency Services Richard Rusaw.
Nine hospitalized, two dead
The crash on County Route 25 sent nine people to the hospital with injuries of varying severity. Eight went to Canton-Potsdam Hospital, and one went to Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center in Ogdensburg, Rusaw said.
The county sheriff’s office initially said one person died at the scene. It later said a second person had died.
“It was tragic for everyone involved,” Rusaw said.
Departments responded from as far as Star Lake
Ten departments were on the scene, with some coming from as far as Star Lake to help.
“We had 15 ambulances that responded to the scene, or within the vicinity of the scene,” Rusaw said. “Weekend time is where we often have some of our higher availability for response for the volunteers.”
Canton Fire and Rescue holding debriefing Tuesday
Canton Fire and Rescue was one of the departments that responded Sunday. The department is holding a critical incident stress debriefing Tuesday, open to all first responders who were on scene.
“Everyone can come in, take a deep breath, talk about what they saw if they need to and just decompress from the incident,” said Chief Steven Cary.
“At the end of the day, it’s a tragic accident for all involved, from those who witnessed it, those who were involved, and those who responded to it,” Rusaw said.
The sheriff’s office continues its investigation into the collision.
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