No Charges in Manitoba Bus Crash Killing 17 Seniors Traveling to Casino

Last summer, a bus carrying two dozen seniors from Dauphin, Canada, was involved in a deadly accident near Carberry in Manitoba. The seniors were traveling to a casino when their bus collided with a semi-trailer truck.

The devastating crash resulted in the bus catching fire and stopping in a nearby ditch after an intersection of the Trans-Canada Highway close to Carberry. Initially, 15 seniors who were traveling lost their lives. However, the number of deceased increased to 17 after two more people passed away from their injuries in hospital.

A year after the incident, authorities, including an attorney for Crown and representatives of the Manitoba Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), confirmed that there will be no charges raised in connection to the deadly crash. Families of the deceased and injured seniors met with authorities on Wednesday.

It has taken hours for Crown’s attorney, Chris Vanderhooft, RCMP Supt. Rob Lasson and Staff Sgt. Sean Grunewald to explain why the bus driver won’t be facing charges about the tragic incident. Grunewald, who was quoted by the Canadian Press, revealed: “We feel that the families understood the situation…I believe that they feel we put every ounce to give them the answers that they were looking for.”

The Bus Driver’s Mistake Didn’t Mean He Was Driving Dangerously

Lasson spoke about the deadly crash, deeming it a “very tragic collision,” which came as a result of the actions of the driver of the bus. However, he explained: “We cannot prove that that choice that day was the result of anything criminal.”

An investigation by the authorities uncovered that the driver of the bus followed the rules. Prior to the Trans-Canada intersection, there was a stop sign that the bus driver stopped at. After that, there was a yield sign right ahead of the merger with Trans-Canada.

Per the investigation, the driver of the bus crossed the road and likely didn’t see the truck that had the right of way. “The bus driver did not appear to see the semi-truck coming,” explained Vanderhooft. He added that while the truck driver attempted to avoid the crash, there wasn’t enough time or space for that to happen.

Vanderhooft supported the decision not to raise charges against the bus driver by explaining: “Momentary inattention does not constitute dangerous driving.”

The driver of the bus from the deadly crash was also injured severely in the incident. The man currently cannot take care of himself. He likely won’t be able to ever talk about the incident due to the brain injuries he sustained during the crash.