The Ottawa city bus and Via Rail passenger train involved in this week's horrific crash that left six people dead have been moved away from the scene as train service between Toronto and Ottawa resumed.
A tow truck moves the Ottawa transit bus Thursday from the scene of the fatal crash with a Via Rail train. The bus will be taken to a storage facility. (CBC)
The OC Transpo bus, which hit the side of the train as it was passing through a level crossing on Wednesday morning, is expected to be moved to a storage unit for further investigation by the Transportation Safety Board.
Via service between Toronto and Ottawa resumed Friday morning, though commuters were told to expect possible delays.
The train tracks near the intersection are still damaged, and trains passing over them must travel no faster than eight kilometres per hour until the final repairs are made.
The investigators will examine data obtained from recorders on both vehicles for clues to determine the cause of the crash. They'll also analyze other physical evidence gathered at the scene, and go over witness accounts.
"We're looking at everything; everything is on the table," said TSB manager Robert Johnston.
The "black box" event recorder from the locomotive of Via Rail Train 51 has been removed and investigators have downloaded information from it.
Via was ordered to equip its trains with cameras after a crash last year, but the process hasn't yet been completed and the train involved in Wednesday's crash did not have a front camera, said Johnston.
Investigators also have some information from the event recorder of the Route 76 OC Transpo bus involved in the crash, but Johnston said it isn't clear what it might contain.
The Transportation Safety Board is expected to update the public about its investigation at a 3:30 p.m. ET press conference.
All 6 victims identified
The front end of the bus was sheared off in the collision and five people, including the driver, were pronounced dead at the scene. One bus passenger died later in hospital from injuries. More than 30 people were also injured in the crash.
Ottawa police have identified all six victims of the collision.
They are, in no particular order:
- David Woodard, 45, the driver and a 10-year veteran of OC Transpo.
- Connor Boyd, 21, a Carleton University student.
- Kyle Nash, 21, a Carleton University and Algonquin College student.
- Michael Bleakney, 57, a geotechnical engineer at Public Works.
- Karen Krzyzewski, 53, a mother of two who worked at Library and Archives Canada.
- Rob More, 35, an employee at the IBM building on Palladium Drive.
Injured people, including 10 in critical condition, were also taken to several area hospitals. Three injured people also checked into hospitals themselves later Wednesday.
Some of the injured were sent home with minor scrapes and bruises, while others underwent surgery. There were no serious injuries among train passengers.
Witnesses struggle with memory
Several witnesses said the bus driver didn't brake at the rail crossing until moments before the collision, but that it wasn't enough to stop the bus before hitting the train.
Greg Mech, who rode atop the double-decker bus, said that from his perspective, he thought the driver did not notice that the train track's signal lights were on and the gates were down.
"People screamed on the bus shortly before the crash because he was not stopping," Mech told CBC News.
A day later, crash survivor Colleen Thomas said she was still haunted by what she saw Wednesday.
"At night, every time I would close my eyes, I would see the train hitting and ... I think I slept for 20 minutes last night. So I don't know. I'm just trying to process it," said Thomas.
"You just see the bodies, you see the twisted metal, the people, everyone running around. Just like the noise, people screaming, just like the impact of it is, I don't know, like I don't know how we're going to be able to get through this.
"We'll carry this with us for the rest of life. You don't get over that … I'll never be able to make that go away," she said.
On Thursday morning, one woman who was on the bus when it crashed was struggling to get on another bus. She met with OC Transpo supervisor Bob Denault, who had helped her get off the bus on Wednesday after the crash.
The woman let a few buses pass by before finally steeling herself and climbing on another double-decker, according to the CBC's Steve Fischer.
Transportation minister asks for level crossing info
In an emailed statement Friday, Ontario Transportation Minister Glen Murray said his thoughts are with everyone affected by the crash, and offered thanks to first responders and people who stopped to help.
The minister also said he's asked staff for information on level crossings.
"In light of Wednesday's tragic events, I have asked staff to gather information on at-grade railway crossings. It's premature to speculate on possible changes at this point.... We await the outcome of [the investigation's] findings. We need to let investigators do their work," he said.
"The province will thoroughly examine any recommendations that come out of the TSB inquiry, and we will implement those recommendations as is necessary."
City to investigate level crossing
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said Wednesday he had asked the city manager to gather any and all information about whether the intersection should have an underpass or an overpass.
This comes years after the city decided against an underpass at the crossing due to the high cost.
"The whole issue of whether there should be an underpass or an overpass, we're gathering all of that information. It was before my time as mayor, but I've asked for the city manager to gather that information and provide it to the Transportation Safety Board," Watson said.
"And what I indicated today publicly is that obviously any recommendations to improve safety that come out of this inquiry … we will do our utmost to adopt them."
Ottawa police said that since they began monitoring collisions in the area in 2002, that there have been no crashes at the intersection of the rail crossing and the Transitway.
Craig Watson, president of the union representing Ottawa city bus drivers, said OC Transpo drivers have not had an issue with rail crossings in the past.
"Obviously we have that concern now," he told CBC News Network anchor Carol MacNeil.
Commuter routes, train service return to normal
Flowers were left on the train tracks close to where an Ottawa transit bus collided with a Via Rail passenger train Wednesday, killing six people. (Kristy Kirkup/CBC)
All lanes of Woodroffe Avenue, which runs parallel to the Transitway, have been reopened.
Via Rail service between Toronto and Ottawa has returned, though commuters were told to expect some delays Friday.
More than 100 people attended a vigil Wednesday for the victims in Barrhaven. Visitors lit candles, lay flowers and sang songs to remember those who lost their lives.
"It's such a community," one man said, adding that when photos of the victims were released, he thought he had recognize some of them from being out and about in the community.
On Friday, officials said the makeshift memorial would have to be moved closer to Fallowfield station for safety reasons.
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