People were asked to light candles Tuesday night in memory of four teenagers killed in a collision near Winnipeg Beach, as community members rally around young people grieving the sudden loss of their friends.

In a post to a Gimli community Facebook group, Dee Dee Miyai asked residents to light a candle and offer prayers for the four teenagers at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Miyai said she was also holding a fire at her home to give grieving teenagers a place to gather and support one another.

“Please light a candle and send prayers to these four beautiful souls gone too soon at 9:30pm tonight,” Miyai wrote. “We are having a fire at my house for the kids in mourning.”

She described the community as shaken by the deaths and said she is trying to provide a place for local teenagers to begin processing the loss.

“Our community is shaken, the kids are broken and I’m trying to bring some healing for them.”

Remembering four teenagers

Miyai identified the teenagers by their first names as Braiden, Maya, Chloe, and Landyn. She said Braiden was like a son to her and a brother to her children.

“My house is the drop in for the teens and I love them as a momma bear,” she wrote.

“The loss of Braiden, Maya, Chloe and Landyn will forever leave us changed.”

Miyai also offered condolences to the teenagers’ families and said she plans to continue supporting the young people who are grieving.

“I’ll do my best to take care of these teenagers I love so much who are hurting. I am heartbroken too.”

Four killed in Sunday collision

The four teenagers died in a two-vehicle collision near Winnipeg Beach on Sunday night.

Gimli RCMP responded to the intersection of Highway 8 and Highway 229 at about 9:15 p.m. on Sept. 6.

Police said an 18-year-old Winnipeg woman, an 18-year-old Gimli man, an 18-year-old Sandy Hook woman, and a 17-year-old boy from Ear Falls, Ont., died at the scene.

Four Winnipeg residents travelling in the other vehicle, including two children, suffered minor injuries and were taken to Winnipeg for treatment.

RCMP continue to investigate the collision.