Community of Amqui still shaken one year after deadly truck attack

It’s been one year since a pickup truck attack in the small eastern Quebec town of Amqui, nearly 700 kilometres northeast of Montreal.

Three people were killed when a man, police say, intentionally mounted the sidewalk with his vehicle and plowed into pedestrians walking beside the town’s main road on March 13, 2023. 

Ken Moreau was right there.

“I was walking on the sidewalk when all of a sudden I heard a suspicious noise from a truck and then I saw the horror,” he said. “I saw the people being hit and thrown and I don’t know what I did, but somehow I saved my own life.”

Moreau says he could’ve died that day and considers himself lucky.

“The man in front of me died and he was further than me. I didn’t have time to react, it was so fast.”

39-year-old Steeve Gagnon turned himself in that day and was charged with three counts of first-degree murder, nine counts of attempted murder and two counts of dangerous driving causing death.

David Morin was in his car at the time of the incident and was one of the first to respond.

“I wanted to help because I was a firefighter for 12 years but as soon as I saw it, it shocked me because I have two children, it’s a small town where everyone knows each other,” he said. I approached the situation calmly and started doing CPR 

65-year-old Gérald Charest and 73-year-old Jean Lafrenière were pronounced dead on scene, while 41-year-old Simon-Guillaume Bourget died of his injuries in hospital days later.

Both Moreau and Morin knew Charest through his work in landscaping and the community.

“He was an angel this man, he was really a good person that you wanted to have in your life and unfortunately he’s no longer here,” said Moreau.

Some at the site of the tragedy are now forever bonded.

“It comes back to me often because I now see the people that were hit and on the floor at physiotherapy,” Moreau said. “We see each other, we hug. We created a connection because of this.”

A year later, the tragedy is still on the minds of many Amqui residents.

“Everyone talks about it but we try to forget at the same time,” Moreau said.

Morin says he passes by the main road all the time.

“It’s always a flashback, you can’t not think about it,” he said. “Even today, I can still see the scene in my head.

Gagnon, meanwhile, has been ordered to stand trial and will next be in court June 3rd. For the community, moving forward can only happen once the case is settled.

“What will help is when he is sentenced,” Morin said. “But to heal, it’s not easy. There are families that are touched forever. They’ll have after-effects for the rest of their lives.