Reporter: Courtney Williams
A 46-year-old man is dead after his pickup truck collided with a Durham Region Transit (DRT) bus in the midst of the winter storm that hammered the city on March 12.
The crash took place shortly after 9:30 a.m. when the two vehicles collided, causing the DRT bus to lose control and fall into a nearby ravine.
Only three people were on board the bus at the time of the collision, and they were not seriously injured in the accident. Two passengers were sent to the hospital, treated for their injuries, and released.
UOIT student Ranil Patel narrowly avoided the incident on his way home from the mall that morning due to bus delays.
“It was my first time taking the bus all year. We just missed that bus on our way back,” he said. “The next one was delayed by over an hour as the bus we missed had crashed and it took time for them to investigate and send a new bus to us.”
Patel also mentioned that his bus ride home showcased many weather-related accidents that required emergency response teams to be out in full force.
“On our bus ride home there were police, fire trucks and ambulances responding everywhere,” he said. “A lot of people were sliding and one car even went into the wrong lane.”
According to the Durham Regional Police website, anyone with information about this incident or witnessed this collision is asked to call D/Cst. Ouellette of the Traffic Services Branch at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 5272.
