A 31-year-old man is facing impaired driving charges following a fatal head-on crash in Ottawa’s west end Wednesday evening. Emergency crews responded to a crash involving a passenger van and a sedan on Carling Avenue, near Ullswater Drive, at approximately 7:15 p.m. The Ottawa Police Service said a 52-year-old woman from Ottawa was pronounced dead at the scene. Health Canada told CTV News Ottawa the victim was a Health Canada security contractor. “Health Canada can confirm that a departmental security vehicle was involved in the incident, and the individual who was tragically killed was a Health Canada security contractor,” the department said in a statement Thursday evening. “We offer our sincere condolences to the families involved.” There were no passengers in the vehicle, according to police. On Thursday, police said Vicente Ramos, 31, has been charged with impaired operation of a motor vehicle causing death and dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death. Ottawa Paramedic Service public information officer Marc-Antoine Deschamps told CTV News Ottawa Wednesday evening that paramedics treated two people at the scene. A man was transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Deschamps. “Police are continuing the investigation, including processing the scene and examining the vehicles involved to determine the factors that led to the collision,” police said in a media release. “Police would like to speak with anyone who witnessed the collision or who may have dashcam or surveillance footage from the area at the time of the incident.” The president of MADD Ottawa said the collision is “heartbreak for the family.” “It’s a reminder of just how dangerous it is to drink and drive,” Valerie Keyes told CTV News Ottawa. “Don’t do it. There’s no excuse for it. There is no real excuse for drinking and driving.” Keyes notes Ontario Provincial Police and Ottawa police continue to conduct RIDE checkpoints. “The police, bless them, are out there more. They’re catching more. And that’s grand because they, you know, they’re out doing RIDES, they’re out doing patrols, and they end up being able to catch more people,” Keyes said. “We try and get that message out as much as we can, and, hopefully, one day we can say we don’t have any victims to look after.” “Impaired driving is preventable. You can take an Uber, you can take a taxi, you can call a friend, you can take OC Transpo. And some people say ‘well, taxi, it’s $50, $60.’ But let’s just compare $60 versus a life. It’s not even comparable,” said Ottawa Police Sgt. Amy Gagnon with the Impaired Countermeasures unit. Gagnon said 139 drivers have been charged with impaired driving offences in the first two months of the year. “We’re going to take this opportunity to remind everyone that driving is a privilege and with that privilege comes a responsibility to drive sober, keep our roads safe, protect your neighbours, protect your loved ones. Drive sober or plan a different ride home,” Gagnon said. Carling Avenue was closed between Moodie Drive and Ullswater Drive Wednesday evening for the police investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Ottawa Police Service’s Fatal Collision Investigation Unit at 613-236-1222, extension 2345. With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Katie Griffin
