Most workers injured in northern B.C. bus crash released from hospital

The exterior of the University Hospital of Northern BC in Prince George is seen here in an undated file photo. (Northern Health)

Seventeen out of the 18 people who were taken to hospital after a bus crash on a northern B.C. forest service road Friday morning have been discharged, according to a Friday night statement from TC Energy, the company behind Coastal GasLink.

One person remains in hospital under observation, the company said.

“We are grateful for the support and care of those individuals, and that this did not result in a more serious accident. Any incident where workers or the community are involved is not something we take lightly,” the statement reads.

The charter bus was transporting approximately 30 people to a worksite for the natural gas pipeline project north of Prince George when it rolled over on Firth Lake Forest Service Road near Hambone Road.

A ‘code orange’ protocol was activated at University Hospital of Northern B.C. in response to the single-vehicle crash, and seven ambulances from Prince George and Mackenzie, as well as three BCEHS support units were dispatched to the scene.

The code orange response ended later Friday afternoon, Northern Health announced. The health authority said the hospital received 18 patients and all were in “good to fair” condition.

Horizon North, which runs camps for pipeline workers, identified the injured as their employees in a Facebook post, saying that the company is launching an investigation to determine the cause of the crash.