Canada - 2 children dead, driver charged after bus crashes into daycare in Laval, Quebec, 8 Feb 2023

[dotr]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/bus-hit-daycare-laval-1.6740987

''WARNING: This article contains distressing details.

A man drove a city bus into a daycare in Laval, Que., on Wednesday morning, authorities said, killing two children and injuring six more.

The driver, a 51-year-old man who was employed with the Société de transport de Laval (STL), was arrested and is facing reckless driving and homicide charges. Several sources told Radio-Canada that the suspect is Pierre Ny St-Amand.

Around 8:30 a.m., the bus from the Société de transport de Laval (STL) drove into the Garderie Éducative de Sainte-Rose in the Sainte-Rose neighbourhood on Terrasse Dufferin.

A neighbour who witnessed the crash said he and a group of parents tried to rescue children pinned under the bus and managed to subdue the driver, who was acting erratically.

Laval police spokesperson Erika Landry said two children are confirmed dead, one at the scene. Urgences-santé confirmed 12 people were injured, including six other children who are recovering in hospital but are expected to survive. One adult was also taken to hospital to be treated for shock.''

 

[dotr]

Pierre Ny St-Amand was arrested after a Laval city bus crashed into a daycare, killing two children and injuring more, according to Noovo Info police sources.

2 children dead, 6 injured after city bus crashes into daycare in Montreal suburb Laval, driver arrested

Two children are dead and six others are injured after a Laval city bus crashed into a daycare Wednesday morning. The driver of the bus, a 51-year-old man, has been arrested and faces charges of homicide and dangerous driving, police say.

montreal.ctvnews.ca

''The incident took place at the Garderie éducative Sainte-Rose on Dufferin Terrace in Laval's Sainte-Rose district shortly after 8:30 a.m. Nine ambulances were sent to the scene, and the other six children are no longer in critical condition.

Dr. Marc Girard, a spokesperson for Montreal's Ste-Justine's Children's Hospital, said four children between the ages of three and five were hospitalized with "various types of trauma" following the crash. The children — two boys and two girls — were conscious when they arrived at the hospital, which went into a code orange to free up resources to deal with the mass casualty situation.''

A parent at the scene alleged the driver "entered the daycare parking lot and accelerated to crash into the daycare."

"It was clear he wasn’t in his right mind at that moment," she said.

Laval Mayor Stephane Boyer said police are looking into the events prior to the crash, adding that the driver had been employed with the STL for a decade.

A neighbour to the daycare said he rushed over to the scene of the crash. Hamdi Benchaabane told reporters that he and three parents managed to subdue the driver, who he said had stepped out of the bus, removed all his clothing and started screaming.

"He was yelling, he didn't stop yelling," Benchaabane said. "The first thing he did was take off all his clothes after opening the bus door ... He was just yelling, there were no words coming out of his mouth."

He said he and the others had to strike the driver to get him under control, before police cuffed the man. The driver, he said, "was in a different world."

 

[Dre]

woah… clearly this man is or was experiencing some kind of psychosis.. I hope they’re able to figure out what caused this, maybe they can figure out the root or trigger… SO sad for those poor families, losing babies would be an inescapable misery

 

[alucardsdream]

How horrible! It sounds like the bus driver was clearly in crisis...I wonder if he had a history of mental health issues or substance abuse?

 

[dotr]

rbbm

Driver charged with first-degree murder after bus plows into Montreal daycare, killing 2 and injuring 6

Witnesses describe trying to subdue him in a chaotic scene in Laval. The 51-year-old municipal employee faces two counts of first-degree murder.

www.thestar.com

''Doctors want a psychiatric evaluation for St-Amand.
He is set to return to court on Feb. 17.

On the residential Laval street when St-Amand lives with his wife and two children, neighbours received news of the killings with shock.

The family who lived next door described St-Amand, his wife and two young daughters as a close family, and him as a doting father.

“They were a happy family, for us,” said Elias Chehade. “We never had visits but that’s my impression.”

Public records show St-Amand arrived in Quebec from Cambodia at the age of 11.

St-Amand regularly worked in his backyard laying paving stones, playing with his daughters and hosting barbecues for their many friends in a large backyard that is covered under snow in winter but appointed with a well-used loveseat in warmer seasons, said Chehade’s wife, Nawal Ghanen.

“They had so many barbecues with others from their community,” said Ghanen.

“I’m in shock,” said Chehade. “The last time it snowed, last Thursday or Friday, he was outside shovelling and I was shovelling here. He said good morning and I said good morning. Then he took his bike and left.”

The hub for the Laval bus service is located a short distance from the family home.

“I’m sorry for what happened and I’m sorry for everybody. Even his family.”

 

[Marysmith]

This is horrific. Omg.

 

[PrairieWind]

My God that is awful!!! I can't even imagine being one of those parents.

 

[dotr]

Bus driver charged with murder after Quebec daycare crash deemed fit for trial

Pierre Ny St-Amand is charged with two counts of first-degree murder, attempted murder and six counts of assault on children.

nationalpost.com

''Pierre Ny St-Amand, the Laval bus driver charged with murdering two children at a daycare earlier this month, is fit to stand trial, but was ordered Friday to undergo a second mental health evaluation.''

St-Amand is charged with two counts of first-degree murder. He is also charged with the attempted murder of the occupants of the daycare on Terrasse Dufferin by driving the bus into it and six counts of assault on children who were born in 2018 and 2017.

The request to determine if he was fit to stand trial was made after St-Amand’s first court appearance on Feb. 8, following his arrest. He refused to answer a different judge’s questions while in a hospital bed.
The case will return to court on March 28.''

 

[ifindedout]

Judge orders bus driver to stand trial in Laval daycare crash

Pierre Ny St-Amand was arrested after a transit bus crashed into the front of a daycare, killing two children and injuring six others.

montrealgazette.com

SAINT-JÉRÔME — A judge on Thursday ordered a man to stand trial on charges including first-degree murder in the deaths of two children killed when a city bus rammed into a Montreal-area daycare last year.

Pierre Ny St-Amand was arrested after a transit bus crashed into the front of a daycare in Laval on Feb. 8, 2023, killing two young children, ages five and four, and injuring six others.

After hearing evidence and arguments this week during St-Amand’s preliminary hearing, Quebec Court Judge François Landry ruled that there was sufficient evidence to send the case to trial. The 52-year-old former Laval transit driver will also stand trial on seven other charges, including attempted murder and aggravated assault.