DUNCAN (NEWS1130) – Three people are dead after a crash on Vancouver Island.

Five others have been sent to hospital in Victoria.

The head-on collision happened around 11:30 a.m. Sunday on the Malahat Highway near Shawnigan Lake. Two of the five people hurt are said to have critical injuries and have been flown to a hospital in Victoria.

Barb McLintock with the BC Coroners Service says the area is known for terrible accidents.

“It sounds like it was a very bad crash. Of course, it’s going to raise for us the issues that are raised everytime that there’s a bad crash on that stretch of road,” explains McLintock.

“Last year, we talked about the need to get some better barriers in place and some of those barriers have gone in, but I think there will be more discussion about safety on the Malahat in the wake of this,” she adds.

Investigators are now looking into what exactly caused the crash.  McLintock points out at the time of the accident, it was raining heavily in Victoria.

The victims haven’t been identified.

The highway was closed for hours near Shawnigan Lake. The route has since re-opened.