Humboldt Broncos bus crash: Judge finally approves plan to distribute the $15.2 million

The money was raised on GoFundMe after the tragic crash.

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Published 5 years ago
Humboldt Broncos bus crash: Judge finally approves plan to distribute the $15.2 million
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The families of the victims know the money cannot bring back the son they lost in the tragic bus crash that took place in April. Sixteen people were killed and another 13 were injured when the Humboldt Broncos team bus collided with a tractor-trailer at a highway intersection north of Tisdale on April 6. The semi driver was uninjured, and now faces multiple dangerous driving charges.

On Wednesday, more than six months of deliberation, a Saskatchewan judge, Justice Neil Gabrielson, has approved a plan to distribute the $15.2 million raised on GoFundMe after the Humboldt Broncos bus crash as reported by TSN senior hockey writer Frank Seravelli. 


Families of the 16 people who died in the crash will each receive a total of $525,000. Each of the 13 surviving players will receive a total of $475,000. Those figures include the $50,000 that was already distributed to all 29 families in mid-August.

Scott Thomas, whose son Evan lost his life in the bus crash, believes the ruling is fair for everyone.

"We'd give any amount of money to have our son back. No question. So it's been an emotional roller coaster the last little while for sure," Thomas told reporters outside court. 

"Our family, and I think I can speak for every family, is happy it's completed, for sure."

Gabrielson accepted the recommendation of the five-member committee formed to allocate the funds on behalf of the Humboldt Broncos Memorial Fund Inc. That five-member advisory committee – which included Winnipeg Jets executive chairman Mark Chipman, Olympic gold medalist Hayley Wickenheiser, retired Saskatchewan judge Dennis Ball, Dr. Peter Spafford of the Univ. of Sask. College of Medicine and Kevin Cameron, executive director of the Canadian Centre For Threat Assessment And Trauma Response – based its recommendation on recent conversations with family members.

“Everyone has proven that together, we can face adversity and move on … Humboldt Strong,” Gabrielson said in court.

Dispersing that money is the next step in the Broncos’ off-ice process.

The crowdfunding effort initiated after the crash ultimately brought in $15.1 million on the GoFundMe website from countries all over the world. 

“We have considered the logic and fairness of our recommendations by asking two simple questions,” the committee wrote in its 19-page document filed in Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench last week.
“First, would any of the 13 survivors and their families trade places with any of the other 16 families in return for any amount of money? Of course, they would not.
“Second, would any of the 16 families who have lost a loved one forego any amount of money if they could have their sons, daughters or partners back? Of course they would, in a heartbeat.”
Source: TSN