JASPER – A 52-year-old female bus driver was struck and killed by her bus in the parking lot of the Columbia Icefield Discovery Centre, Oct. 4.
According to the RCMP, she was outside of her bus when it hit her around 1:15 p.m.
Police did not release her identity, however, colleagues identified the woman on social media as Yumiko Taura, a driver for Canada Coach Lines.
“Yesterday a tragic freak accident took the life of a member of our community here in the Bow Valley,” wrote John House, who started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for her funeral costs.
“Yumiko Taura was a motor coach driver who while standing beside her coach and unloading passengers at a prime tourist attraction along the Icefield Parkway became pinned by her own motor coach as it started to move toward three parked cars.”
According to the RCMP, a STARS air ambulance was dispatched to the parking lot, however, when it arrived she was declared dead at the scene.
Several witnesses were interviewed by police and preliminary information indicates that the bus also struck four parked vehicles before it came to rest. No other people were injured.
According to the online fundraising campaign, Taura was originally from Japan and has no family in Canada.
The money will be used to assist with funeral expenses or to repatriate her body to Japan. If it is not possible, organizers have indicated they may use the money for a memorial bench with a plaque in her memory.
Canada Coach Lines Inc. declined to comment on the tragic circumstances, however, Ron Movat, one of her co-workers, shared a personal message on his Facebook praising her work.
“We lost a coworker today, in an accident that shouldn’t have happened. Like the rest in our company, I’m devastated, but I can’t help feeling grateful that I took the opportunity, recently, to tell her how much I admired her for her work practices,” wrote Movat.
Pursuit Collection, the company that manages the parking lot, did not respond to an interview request.
As of press deadline more than $16,000 had been raised through the GoFundMe campaign towards its $20,000 goal.
The RCMP said the incident remains under investigation.
