Six in critical condition, 15 dead after Canada highway crash

Six people are battling life-threatening injuries after a highway collision in Canada that killed 15.

Another four survivors are still being treated in hospital, officials said on Friday.

A bus carrying elderly people to a casino collided into a truck on a highway in Manitoba on Thursday afternoon.

It is "one of the worst tragedies" ever seen in the province, one official said.

The large-scale response to the deadly crash on the Trans-Canada Highway near Carberry, two hours west of Winnipeg, involved 13 ambulances, and air ambulances.

Emergency vehicles were dispatched to the scene at 11:43 local time on Thursday (17:35 BST).

"Manitoba experienced one of the worst tragedies this province has ever seen," said Lanette Siragusa, CEO of Shared Health, which runs the Winnipeg hospital where nine of the 10 total surviving crash victims are being treated, during a news conference on Friday.

The drivers of the two vehicles were among those taken to hospital.

Dr Shawn Young, the hospital's chief executive, said the six patients in critical care had "quite extensive injuries".

The age of the patients could affect recovery, he added. "This is an elderly cohort of patients."

Officials said most injuries to the patients were orthopaedic but declined to provide further details about their condition.

Most of the elderly people aboard the bus were from the town of Dauphin, Manitoba, or the surrounding areas, and were traveling to the Sand Hills Casino in Carberry.

Dauphin Mayor David Bosiak told CBC News the crash was devastating to the tight-knit community there.

"Literally everyone in town knew someone that was on that bus," Mr Bosiak said. "There's a collective feeling of shock - it's just a tremendous tragedy for our little community.

"It's a kick in the teeth, a punch in the gut."

William Doherty, the CEO of Day & Ross trucking company - which owned the lorry involved in the crash - told CTV News that "the thoughts of the entire Day & Ross team are with those who have lost loved ones in this terrible incident".

"We are holding out hope that those injured will recover," Mr Doherty added. "We will fully cooperate with the investigation and offer any assistance and support that we can."

Among those who have so far offered their condolences is Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

"I'm keeping the injured in my thoughts," he said in a statement on Twitter. "I cannot imagine the pain those affected are feeling - but Canadians are here for you."