UPDATED: Four cadets dead after accident at Royal Military College in Kingston

The vehicle incident occurred shortly after 2 a.m. Friday. The cadets died when a vehicle entered a body of water nearby the College.

Frontenac Paramedics said there were four casualties treated at the scene of the incident. No one was taken to hospital.

“This loss is felt across the RMC community and we extend our deepest condolences to all our members, their families, and their friends during this difficult time,” a spokesperson for the Department of National Defence wrote in an email Friday.

“RMC’s first priority is to ensure our naval and officer cadets, staff, faculty, and families are cared for and supported.”

The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service launched an investigation the incident, according to Kingston Police, who are assisting.

The Royal Military College campus is on the Point Frederick peninsula, where Lake Ontario meets the St. Lawrence River in Kingston.

Commodore Josée Kurtz, the college’s commanding officer, confirmed Friday night the families of the deceased had been notified. 

Kurtz identified officer cadets as Jack Hogarth, Andrei Honciu, Broden Murphy and Andrés Salek as the victims.

“The principal and I extend our deepest condolences to their loved ones,” Kurtz said during her prepared remarks. “As parents ourselves, we can only imagine their pain. And we will continue to provide them the support they need in a tough days and weeks ahead.”

Kurtz did not provide details about the incident or type of vehicle involved, citing the integrity of the ongoing investigation by the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service.

The four students were completing their Bachelor of Arts degrees. Hogarth and Salek were studying military and strategic studies and were going to become armoured officers in the army.

Honciu was studying business administration and was to become a logistics officer.

Murphy was specializing in business administration and planned to become an aerospace environment controller in the Royal Canadian Air Force. 

“It’s a small university, we have about 1,200 students on campus, so to lose four all at once, those young people, all our staff and faculty, we pretty much all know each other,” said Kurtz. 

Kingston Mayor Bryan Paterson said on social media Friday that he was “absolutely heartbroken to hear of the tragic loss.”

“The entire RMC community is devastated by this tragic loss,” said Kurtz.

Amanda Brown is a reporter with the Western Standard

abrown@westernstandard.news

Twitter: @WS_JournoAmanda