Fifteen people have been confirmed dead after a crash between a semi-trailer truck and a bus full of seniors headed to a casino near the southwestern Manitoba town of Carberry on Thursday, the commanding officer of the province’s RCMP said at a news conference.
Rob Hill said the small bus that collided with the semi was carrying about 25 people — most of whom were seniors from in and around the western Manitoba city of Dauphin, about 150 kilometres north of Carberry.
Ten survivors were taken to hospital for their injuries, but Hill said the number of casualties may shift into the evening.
“Sadly, this is a day in Manitoba and across Canada that will be remembered as one of tragedy and incredible sadness,” Hill said, adding many people in the Dauphin area are still waiting for news about their loved ones.
“To all those waiting, I can’t imagine how difficult it is not knowing if the person you love the most will be making it home tonight. I’m so sorry we cannot get you the definitive answers you need more quickly.”
Earlier Thursday, there were multiple tarps on the ground close to where the collision happened at the intersection of the Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 5, just north of Carberry, a small community about 160 kilometres west of Winnipeg.
Ron Bretecher said both of his parents were among the passengers on the bus to the casino. While his mother is in hospital at Health Sciences Centre Winnipeg, his father is still unaccounted for.
“So [my] family’s just basically waiting for word,” Bretecher said at the hospital Thursday evening. “It’s just very difficult.”
Barbara Czech, a spokesperson for Sand Hills Casino near Carberry, confirmed the bus was en route to that casino. Czech said to her knowledge, the private vehicle operator had not been there before.
Kim Armstrong, the administrator of the Dauphin Active Living Centre, said the bus departed for the casino from the lodge in the morning. Seniors and community members often go on bus trips to nearby events and casinos, she said.
The senior community is extremely tightly knit in Dauphin, a city of about 8,000, she told The Canadian Press.
“It’s huge to lose so many individuals of our community and, of course, it is shocking. We just pray for those that are surviving.”
Dauphin Mayor David Bosiak said “literally everyone in town knew someone that was on that bus.”
“There’s a collective feeling of shock — it’s just a tremendous tragedy for our little community.
