A driver who was stuck on a major highway in Ontario's cottage country on Canada Day as police searched for suspects in a home invasion says the situation put stranded commuters at risk.
Nancy Turley said the decision to keep people waiting in their cars for hours on a stretch of Highway 11 was far riskier than letting them go because it could have led to a hostage situation during the manhunt.
“I thought it was a little bit ridiculous because if, in fact, these (suspects) are running around with guns like we were told and (police) were trying to catch them, I think the drivers were far more at risk just sitting there for four hours in their cars,” she said.
Turley said she was driving on Highway 11 after leaving her home in Milford Bay, Ont., at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday for training at a Salvation Army camp in Georgina when she came upon hundreds of vehicles at a standstill.
She initially thought there was an accident but then found out a manhunt was underway after she called her husband and her son searched online to find out what was happening in the area.
“We were really in the dark and nobody came and told us what was going on,” she said in a phone interview Wednesday. "We were supposed to shelter in place and if you were in your car, to stay in your car with your doors locked, which I thought was a little bit bizarre."
Police had blocked a stretch of the highway after an armed home invasion in the Hillside East area, east of Huntsville, at around 5 a.m.
Ontario Provincial Police also issued an advisory on social media asking drivers stuck on Highway 11 to stay in their vehicles and lock their doors during the hunt for the suspects.
OPP said in a press release Wednesday evening that six people are facing various charges in the alleged home invasion, including robbery with a firearm and kidnapping.
Investigators believe additional suspects who may be armed and dangerous remain at large, along with a stolen silver Honda CRV with Ontario licence plate CZFE 895. Anyone who spots the vehicle is urged to call 911 without approaching the car.
OPP did not respond Wednesday to a request for comment about criticism of the highway closure.
Turley said she and other people started getting out of their vehicles after a while to chat since the internet connection on that part of the highway wasn’t good enough to check the latest news online and they didn't want to run their cars for four hours.
She said she spent most of the time listening to music, praying, and speaking with friends and family members on the phone until police reopened the highway.
"When they finally let us go through, you could see where everything had happened, where the suspect's car was off in the ditch and the doors were wide open and there was all sorts of mess on the road and skid marks,” she said, adding that it was “unnerving” to see a police officer with an automatic weapon.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 2, 2025.
Sharif Hassan, The Canadian Press
