Bus driver at fault but won’t be charged for collision with big rig that killed 17, RCMP says

Canadian officials say that they will not charge a bus driver involved in a mass casualty collision in Manitoba last summer.

On June 26, RCMP said that no charges will be filed against a bus driver for a crash that killed 17 senior citizens in Manitoba on June 15, 2023.

The crash occurred near Carberry as a semi truck was eastbound on Highway 1 at the same time that a bus transporting senior citizens was southbound on Highway 5. “The bus had already crossed the westbound lanes of Highway 1 and was crossing the eastbound lanes when it was struck by the semi,” RCMP said.

The bus was transporting 25 people to a casino near Carberry when the crash occurred.

Following a year of investigation, RCMP said that the bus driver was at fault in the collision as the truck had the right-of-way, and that a blind spot may have prevented him from seeing the oncoming semi truck.

However, due to the bus driver’s traumatic brain injury sustained in the crash, he is unlikely to ever be able to speak to police, leaving investigators unable to prove that his actions were criminal.

“It happened because of a choice made by the bus driver. However, we cannot prove that choice that day was the result of anything criminal,” RCMP superintendent Rob Lasson said during a Wednesday press conference.

Canadian transportation officials plan to redesign the intersection where the collision occurred, the Winnipeg Free Press reports.