Calgary Bus Crash Update: Natural-Gas Tanks Ignited in Blast; Three Victims Identified

How it happened

The crash occurred at about 1:10 p.m. Thursday on the 800 block of Saddletowne Circle N.E., near 80 Avenue N.E. Police reconstructed the sequence: a northbound transit bus struck a truck travelling the same direction; the truck entered an adjacent lane, sideswiped an SUV and hit the rear of a box truck. The bus continued, struck the back of a sedan and pushed it through the intersection, then rear-ended a second transit bus — fuelled by compressed natural gas — stopped at a bus stop. The second bus's natural-gas tanks ignited and exploded, and the bus was pushed across the road into another sedan. Eight vehicles were involved in all.

Casualties and investigation

All three people killed were on the second bus; they have been identified and their next of kin notified. Besides the fatalities, 16 people suffered minor injuries, including a police officer who ran toward the burning bus and is now recovering at home. The driver of the first bus suffered life-threatening injuries; the second bus's driver escaped on her own. The cause remains under investigation; police have not determined whether speed, impairment or distraction played a role.