Dauphin mourns victims of fatal bus crash at vigil

People in Dauphin, Man., came together on Thursday night to mourn the victims of last week's fatal bus crash in southwestern Manitoba.

Hundreds of people filled the Ukrainian Orthodox Auditorium for a multi-faith vigil that gave community members an opportunity to grieve together. Officials from the city's churches met earlier this week to plan the event.

"All of the love and the wisdom that your family members shared with you throughout your life now becomes the foundation by which you find reason, purpose and the will to move forward," Rev. Brent Kuzyk, of St. George's Ukrainian Orthodox Church, said at the gathering.

 "Every person on that bus, we know and we respect as being citizens of our community and our parishes. They had a lust for life and a desire to fill their lives with experience, with the [ability] of finding joy and making memories with their families and friends whenever they could."

There were psalms, Scripture and messages of hope. There were also 18 lit candles – one for each of the deceased, one for the nine people still in hospital, and one for the first responders who attended the crash site.

Dauphin's mayor, David Bosiak, said the past week has been tremendously difficult for the city, with council and administration continuously "trying to do the right thing at the right time."

But Bosiak said he applauds the strength of the community.

"It's reassuring to know that we can pull together and support each other in times of crisis," he said. "As we heal, I know that we will continue to support each other.

"We're hurting, but we're also resilient."

Ernie Sirski, reeve of the Rural Municipality of Dauphin, also spoke at the vigil. 

"The loss of so many lives — lives of people who built this community, people who attended our churches, worked at our festivals, and were parents and grandparents of so many here today – are now a memory, but a memory that will live on in our hearts, our minds, and our community," he said.

Sixteen people died after the bus taking them on a day trip to a casino collided with a semi-trailer truck at the intersection of the Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 5 shortly before noon on June 15.

The 16 people who died, ranging in age from 68 to 88, were identified publicly for the first time by RCMP earlier on Thursday.

Nine remain in hospital as of Wednesday, including four who are in critical care.

Remembering the victims of the fatal Manitoba bus crash

1 year ago

Duration 2:47

Family, friends and community members are grappling with losing their loved ones in one of Manitoba's deadliest crashes. The names of the 16 seniors who died in last week's bus crash were released as RCMP officers and family members placed photos of the victims at the front of a news conference on Thursday.