A Canadian bus driver is facing homicide charges after he allegedly crashed a bus into a daycare center on purpose, leaving six children injured and two dead.
Just an awful, tragic story all around when early on Wednesday an unnamed 51-year-old man drove a city bus into said children’s center in Laval, Québec — a city just outside Montréal. CBS News reported he was employed by the local transit agency Société de transport de Laval when he wrecked the bus he was making routes with.
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Laval police chief Pierre Brochet said in a statement the incident is seemingly out of nowhere — although he speculates it was on purpose:
“We think it’s deliberate but we don’t know the motive.”
According to CTV News, witnesses to the horrific scene reported the driver was “not in his right mind” when he exited the bus:
“He was acting very erratically. He was yelling and taking off his clothes at one point.”
Local resident Hamdi Benchaabane told The Guardian and Montréal Gazette a similar story, also adding it took three parents to subdue the bus driver because he was shouting:
“The first thing he did was take off all his clothes after opening the bus door … He was just yelling; there were no words coming out of his mouth … We had to hit him to subdue him, and we got him on the ground, and then the police put the handcuffs on him.”
The outlet reports about 80 children under the age of five attended the daycare center. One of the parents, who remains anonymous, said it was the oldest class of children in the center that got hit. An arial view of the crash also concluded the bus driver swerved off of the road and straight toward the front of the building. So scary…
Of the kids who were hit, two have tragically died and six were taken to the hospital. One child was pronounced dead at the scene while the other passed away later on while under medical supervision. The remaining six children who were injured are said to be in stable condition, according to CTV News.
You can watch the full report (below):
The bus driver has been arrested and faces homicide charges for the crash, and CNN reports he also faces reckless driving charges.
Québec’s families minister Suzanne Roy said in a statement after learning of the incident:
“Everyone is terribly saddened by what has occurred. When you leave your children at the daycare for the day, you know that they’re in good hands … when an event like that can happen, it shakes us and shatters us.”
Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau also spoke out, expressing his condolences:
“No words can take away the pain and fear that parents, children, and workers are feeling — but we are here for you.”
So terrible. Our hearts go out to the families who are affected by this unthinkable tragedy.
R.I.P
[Image via YouTube/CTV News]
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