StFX student survives, saves lives during bus crash in Monastery
February 4, 2010 10:51 AM
On Saturday, January 23, third year StFX music student Steve Wilton missed the bus. Expecting to travel home for the weekend to New Waterford, Cape Breton, Wilton opted instead for the next scheduled passage at 5:30 p.m. It was a fateful decision that Wilton says he does not regret making.
Shortly after departing from Bloomfield Centre’s Acadian Lines terminal, the bus carrying Wilton crashed through a bridge guardrail and plunged eight metres into the frozen waters of the Tracadie River near Monastery.
“I remember hearing the water coming in. I remember coming out from underwater [inside the sinking bus] and seeing a black ceiling, which was actually the other side of the bus but by then it was the roof since the bus landed on its left side.”
“I had one thought. I thought [the ceiling] was coming closer to me,” remembers Wilton as he recalls the sensation of the bus submerging into the icy waters.
Trapped inside the bus as it began to sink, Wilton dove through the rising waters and through the bus’ broken windshield to escape. He believes the other five passengers escaped beforehand. Wilton remembers this moment as the scariest.
“I thought we were going to continue to sink and the ceiling was going to take me under… [I felt] fear that I never felt before, fear for my life. From then on as I got out of the water and had air and could see everyone was at least breathing, [I was more focused] on action and finding help. It was the first order of business because we were alone and no one was going to see us.”
As Wilton broke through the surface of the water, he surveyed the situation. Passengers were stranded on the bus while the driver remained buckled in his seat, unconscious. The sixth and final passenger, also an Acadian Lines driver traveling as a passenger, was treading water in a state of panic. Seeing the others’ injuries, Wilton decided it was up to him to do something. He crossed another channel of water in order to climb an embankment and reach the road in order to flag down help.
Meanwhile, the remaining passengers sang “Jingle Bells” together in order to focus and remain conscious.
The first vehicle did not see him, but Wilton succeeded in catching the attention of a passing transfer truck. Besides radioing for emergency help, the driver chose not to stay.
By this point, Wilton recalls that his fingers were frozen together while his wet hair was coated by ice.
The following vehicles he flagged down, however, remained at the scene of the accident as emergency workers laboured to rescue the injured passengers stranded on the ice. Indeed, one concerned motorist was from Wilton’s hometown, and drove him home after he was checked by paramedics.
Since the crash, Wilton has spent time with his family in New Waterford. It has given him the chance to reflect.
“It has made me realize how much I love my friends and family around me. Also, not to rush every moment, every day, and always focus on the future,” he says, adding that his emotional recovery will be an on-going process.
“I guess I realize that sometimes just telling the story, it feels superficial sometimes. I’ve got to deal with story that happened, and the emotional aftermath. The most important thing wasn’t telling people the story…it’s been visiting my family. Words can’t really describe what it’s been like,” Wilton concludes.
Wilton is in contact with some of the other passengers. Four were taken to Antigonish’s St. Martha’s Regional Hospital directly from the scene.
He also visited the bus driver in the hospital, which he felt was “part of the healing process” for them both.
Wilton can still hear the bus driver yell out as they crashed through the guardrail, “oh, not this again!”
Kenneth Mitchell, the driver, was behind the wheel during a similar accident less than a year ago in Baddeck, Nova Scotia.
The weather at the time of the Monastery crash was severe, creating low visibility from the blowing wind and snow.
Intercity Passenger Services Product Director Denise Sirois of Orleans Express, the owner of Acadian Lines, comments that the dispatch team and bus driver are responsible for deciding whether to travel during inclement weather.
“As all our motorcoaches are equipped with a cellular phone, we are in constant communication with our drivers. They can give us their opinion at any time on the road conditions and decide, in collaboration with the dispatcher, to continue or not.”
“We will not oblige a driver to continue a trip if the conditions are not good and may present a danger to the safety of our passengers and driver,” she continues.
Sirois cautions that until the investigation is completed, “it is premature to blame the driver for last week accident.”
Wilton has since contacted representatives of Acadian Lines. They requested he submit a list of items he lost during the crash for their insurance. He reveals that he has not received any form of apology from the travel company.
Despite his ordeal, Wilton would not have changed his decision to take the 5:30 p.m. bus. “I consider I was in the right place at the right time. I wouldn’t have taken that bus at 2. If someone else in my position, they would have done the same thing. It’s not extraordinary [to experience such an accident], but it’s rare…I think others would have done the same.”
