Authorities say four people have been killed and dozens more injured after a bus overturned on an “extremely icy” highway in British Columbia on Christmas Eve.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the bus crashed around 6 p.m. local time on Highway 97C east of Merritt, about 170 miles northeast of Vancouver.
The identities of the four people killed were not released, and details about where the bus came from, direction and who owned it were not immediately available.
Emergency responders transported 52 people to the hospital. Of those, 36 chose to be treated for minor to severe injuries, according to Michaela Swan, a spokeswoman for healthcare provider Interior Health.
Of those still hospitalized as of Sunday, two were in serious condition and two had non-life-threatening injuries, she said.
Ms Swan said in a statement: “Despite the small number of patients remaining in the hospital, this is a life-changing incident for all involved, from initial physical injuries. head to the mental and emotional effects of an incident like this.”
The RCMP said an investigation into the crash was ongoing but “it is believed that extremely icy road conditions caused the rollover.” The temperature was around 21 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 6 degrees Celsius) in Merritt around the time of the crash, according to weather records.
On Saturday, every province and territory in Canada has issue an emergency weather warning when the winter weather system knocked out power for thousands of people, the roads were slippery and dozens of cars piled up on highways in Ontario.
in one statementBritish Columbia Premier David Eby and government ministers said they were “shocked and saddened” to hear of the crash.
“Our thoughts are with those affected by the accident, their loved ones and first responders and healthcare workers who went out of their way to treat everyone and keep them safe,” the statement said.
Adrian Dix, British Columbia’s minister of health, on Twitter thanked “all those who responded to the call of duty on Christmas Eve.”
He said that when mass casualty procedures were activated, “medical personnel from across the area rushed to assist,” including 16 ambulances and two planes from Kelowna, Merritt, Kamloops and surrounding areas.
