A 49-year-old man was killed after being struck by a bus in Vancouver’s busiest tourist district Sunday morning.
The man was pinned under the bus. Three other people were injured, one seriously.
A charter tour bus loaded with passengers and parked between the Convention Centre and Canada Place rolled forward and slammed into four people who were walking.
Initially it was believed that a family who was loading their vehicle with luggage was hit but a witness told Postmedia that the injured people were walking in the path of the rolling bus.
The four people were pinned under the VTC Coach, operated by the Vancouver Trolley Company.
Vancouver police Insp. Jeff Harris said it’s not known how or why the bus rolled forward.
Images from the scene show firefighters and ambulance paramedics worked underneath the VTC Coach while the driver and passengers remained on the bus.
Luggage was seen on the ground amidst the wreckage.
The bus left the roadway and ended up partially on the sidewalk. It was headed to the Capilano Suspension Bridge in North Vancouver.
A witness who was almost too distraught to speak said she saw the bus rolling forward just before the collision.
Ryan McKinnon, who is visiting from Elkford, said he didn’t see the incident but arrived shortly after, as firefighters were working to hoist the bus off two people, an older man and a teenage girl.
“It took them about 20 minutes,” he said.
The bus was fully loaded with passengers during the operation. The driver was also still aboard. “He was pretty distressed.”
A person who answered the phone at the Vancouver Trolley Company, which operates VTC Coach, said someone may be available to speak about the accident on Monday. “There is no comment at this time,” she said.
