Haunting coincidence: Saskatoon man injured on highway, nursed back to health by Van de Vorst

The weekend collision that killed a young family of four is stirring painful memories for one Saskatoon man.

Jeremy Sax will live forever with a haunting double coincidence.

Three years ago, he was badly injured in a collision at Highway 11 and Wanuskewin Road. He spent six months in a neck brace followed by another six months of rehabilitation.

The kinesiologist who helped him rebuild his muscles was the young mother killed on the weekend at that intersectionChanda Van de Vorst.

"It was the complete shock. It was just like, I don't know, I was still very surprised that nothing had been done about that intersection three years ago," Sax said.

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Chanda and her husband Jordan Van de Vorst were killed early Sunday morning when their car was hit on Highway 11, on the outskirts of Saskatoon. Five-year-old daughter Kamryn and two-year-old son, Miguire, died later in hospital.

Catherine McKay, 49, is now facing four counts of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death, four counts of impaired operation with a blood alcohol reading over .08 causing death, and four counts of impaired driving causing death.

In Oct. 2012, Sax was driving north on Wanuskewin Road, crossing Highway 11, to head to work. He said he did not look carefully enough before proceeding across the westbound lanes of the highway and an oncoming vehicle T-boned him.

He fractured the left side of his skull, chipped three vertebrae, ruptured his right ear drum, and has permanent hearing loss. Sax said the other driver, thankfully, was okay except for whiplash.

Chanda was part of the team at LifeMark Health Centre who helped Sax rehabilitate. Sax said she was pregnant with Miguire and would sometimes bring Kamryn in with her.

"Every time I worked with her she was just always extremely pleasant, very warm, very helpful," Sax said. "She was pregnant with her son She was really happy and excited about it."

Sax said he hopes to see changes at the intersection to increase safety.