Two Gardner residents, aged 89 and 74, tragically lost their lives following a multi-vehicle collision on Route 202 in New Salem, Massachusetts on Friday afternoon. According to the Northwestern District Attorney's Office, state police arrived at the scene around 2 p.m. to discover that three vehicles had been involved in the crash, as reported by NBC Boston. The identities of the deceased have not been released as the chief medical examiner is set to determine the official causes of death.

Several other individuals from the other vehicles implicated in the incident were injured and taken to Athol Memorial Hospital. In a statement obtained by NBC Boston, a driver of one of the involved vehicles was critically injured and had to be flown quickly to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester by medical helicopter. The full extent of the injuries suffered by the other victims has yet to be disclosed publicly.

Following the accident, Route 202 was closed for a stretch of hours, deviating traffic as emergency crews worked to clear the wreckage from the roadway. The swift response of the authorities ensured that the accident did not further disrupt the flow of the norm daily life beyond the immediate aftermath.

The investigation into the cause of the fatal crash is still underway. WHDH shared that officers, upon responding to the reported crash, immediately ascertained that both the senior driver and their passenger had quickly been pronounced dead at the scene.