Plans are ongoing for a permanent memorial at the site of the tragic Broncos crash. (file photo/CKOM)

By Doug Lett

Broncos Bus Crash Update

Planning continues for memorial at Broncos crash site

Oct 31, 2022 | 5:00 PM

The Humboldt Broncos Memorial Committee said they hope to have an announcement on a memorial by the fifth anniversary of the tragic crash.

“Our hope is to have some kind of an announcement, groundbreaking, by the fifth anniversary,” said Carol Brons. She is a member of the committee, and mother of Dayna Brons, one of 16 people who lost their lives in the crash on April 6, 2018. Another 13 were injured.

However, she said, there are still a couple of hurdles, including the need to move some power lines, and making sure there is safe access to the memorial off the highway.

A news release from the committee said a number of safety enhancements have been completed by the Department of Highways at the site, and SaskPower is in the process of finalizing a plan to relocate power lines away from it.

“We will be respecting the sight lines of the highway, obviously we do not want to impede on that,” Brons said. “We will be very careful not to put anything there that would be detrimental to anybody’s safety.”

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She added there are some ideas on what the committee would like the memorial to look like, but so far nothing concrete.

“We have some ideas of what we want to do but nothing has been given the green light by anybody, so nothing is being announced until it’s all ready to go,” she said.

The crash between the bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos, and a semi, happened at the intersection of Highway 35 and Highway 335, about 170 kilometres northeast of Humboldt.

On Saturday, family representatives and some community members were at the site to collect and archive many of the items people have left there.

“Time does help,” Brons said. “But it doesn’t erase anything, it just makes you more able to cope with the loss, and the tragedy, and the shock.”

“Anybody that’s lost anybody knows that, especially in tragic circumstances or at a young age, there’s always that hole in your life, there’s always that what if,” Brons said.

Her daughter Dayna was 24 when it happened, and the team’s athletic therapist.

“People might look at you and say, oh you’re smiling, and you seem to be enjoying life again, well, our loved ones would not want us to be in a state of despair for the rest of our lives,” Brons said. “So we do try to find some joy when we can but it’s tempered with loss, it will never be the same.”