UPDATED: Collision between courier van and BC Transit bus
By Contributor
The 19-year-old student passenger that was taken to hospital in grave condition following a collision Thursday, June 30, 2022, between a Purolator courier van and a BC Transit bus on Highway 3A near Tarrys has died.
Selkirk College released a statement Monday saying the student has since passed away.
The student, from Quebec, was part of the Explore Program — an applied language program funded by the Council of Ministers of Education Canada and delivered through Selkirk College.
The program includes 19 students from Quebec who arrived in the region in late-June to immerse themselves in English.
The student was transferred to Kelowna Hospital following the accident.
Courier van collides with BC Transit bus leaving student on life support
On June 30, 2022, a Purolator courier van collided with a BC Transit bus on Highway 3A near Castlegar, British Columbia, leaving a 19-year-old student passenger in grave condition on life support.
The collision took place just after 4:30 p.m. when the BC Transit Bus headed eastbound on Highway 3A was sideswiped by an oncoming Purolator courier cube van.
There were 16 students visiting from Quebec as part of a program at Selkirk College that were among the passengers.
One of those, a 19-year-old female, was gravely injured as she sat next to the window where the van hit. The driver of the courier van remained at the scene.
After classmates attempted life-saving first aid, the injured student was transported to Trail Regional Hospital then Kelowna General Hospital where she remains on life support, although she is not expected to survive.
Highway 3A was closed for several hours while police from BC Highway Patrol, Castlegar Detachment, and the Collision Analyst & Reconstruction Service gathered evidence and recovered the vehicles involved.
RCMP Victim Assistance and counsellors from Selkirk College have started the task of helping the involved students.
As BC Highway Patrol Nelson are attempting to determine why the courier driver crossed over the center line, officers are looking for anyone, including anyone with dashboard camera video of pre-collision driving.
Video from the BC Transit bus showed three vehicles, a blue two-door coupe, a silver SUV, and an older grey Pathfinder, driving behind the courier driver who may have specific information.
Anyone with information is asked to contact BC Highway Patrol Nelson at 250-354-5180 and cite file 2022-3153.
