Just Received
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Linda Nguyen, CanWest News Service; Vancouver Sun
Published: Monday, August 27, 2007
ABBOTSFORD, B.C. -- A small wedding went ahead quietly Sunday
morning at the Mission Sikh temple, just two days after six members
of the bride's wedding party were killed and several others badly
injured by an out-of-control truck.
Bride Harsiman Kaur Mahil and groom Jarmal Singh Grewal, both
23, were married in a sombre ceremony attended by only a handful
of guests, rather than the 500 people originally invited to celebrate
the occasion.
The family had earlier requested the media not attend the event,
and police were on hand outside the temple to ensure that wish
was respected.
The family is still reeling after six people in the wedding party
-- including several of Mahil's cousins and an aunt, along with
a close friend -- were killed Friday night when a truck plowed
into a gathering of about 40 family members as they walked along
a rural road in Abbotsford late Friday as part of a traditional
Indo-Canadian ceremony.
Five of the victims have been identified by Punjabi Radio as
Damanpreet Singh Kang, 13, Rubal Kaur, 22, Bhupinder Singh Kaler,
24, Rapduman Singh Dhillan, 25 and Satinder Kaur Mahal, 50. A
sixth victim has not yet been identified.
Another 17 people were injured, including two babies.
Eleven-year-old Jaz Karan Mahil was part of the ceremony. On
Sunday, he said he was walking in the middle of the group when
he saw the a vehicle speeding towards them at high speed.
"I saw the truck. I started running and I screamed to them
(the people he was with) 'There is a truck coming pretty fast',"
he said in an interview. "The next thing I knew I was on
the ground and I couldn't get up. My mom and neighbour came to
get me. My leg was bleeding, my left arm was bleeding, my jaw
hurt. My mom said everything was going to be okay," he said.
The driver of the vehicle, a 71-year-old Indo-Canadian man, was
interviewed by police Saturday and has since been released. Investigators
say drugs and alcohol were not factors in the crash.
Police continue to investigate the cause of the accident.
The crash happened as the family gathered to participate in a
traditional Indian wedding ritual called "Jaago" where
mostly female members of the bride's family walk together from
the house of a close family friend to the bride's residence.
Some people were walking on the road and others on the side,
police said. They were singing and reportedly wearing ornamental
lights on their heads when the pickup rammed into them, pushing
some into a two-metre ditch and pinning them underneath.
A car that was supposed to be tailing the large group with its
flashers on as a safety precaution was turning to get into position
when the crash happened, police said. The group had started walking
before the car was in place.
Const. Casey Vinet described the scene as "chaos" when
emergency crews arrived.
"I have been told by one of our senior officers with over
20 years experience that this is the most difficult scene that
he has ever witnessed," he said at a news conference.
Vinet said the driver, an area resident, is in shock.
"It's too early to tell if any charges will be laid at this
stage. But I've been told the driver was suffering from symptoms
of shock. He hit the crowd, drove into the crowd from behind.
There were dry conditions at the time, given it was a rural area,
it was also very dark -- certainly that played a factor."
Police have seized the pickup and will conduct a mechanical inspection.
Fourteen ambulances, two helicopters and numerous off-duty officers
were called to the crash location near B&A Farms Ltd., a blueberry
farm.
There were around 200 to 300 people sitting underneath tents
at the farm as part of the wedding celebration when the incident
occurred. The farm is owned by Avtar Mahil, the bride's father.
The bride and groom were not part of the Jaago celebrations and
were not injured.
Abbotsford Coun. Moe Gill said he's good friends with the Mahil
family, especially Avtar's brother Balvir, who owns another blueberry
farm in Abbotsford.
Gill said that Balvir's wife, Satinder, was one of the women
killed.
"His wife was over at my house two weeks ago to celebrate
my granddaughter's birthday," he said. "Balvir has now
taken medicine and has gone to sleep. He's in such shock."
Guests had flown in from California, Toronto and India for the
wedding, he said.
He said he and Abbotsford Mayor George Ferguson will visit the
Mahil residence to offer condolences to the grieving family.
The mood was solemn at the site of the crash on a long, unlit
stretch of road over the weekend.
Cars full of family members and friends came as word spread throughout
the tight-knit Sikh community in Abbotsford about the tragedy.
Bouquets of flowers were laid at the side of the road to remember
the victims, and more than 100 people, many wearing black headscarves
and turbans, walked along the asphalt, with red bleary eyes looking
at the yellow and blue marks where the victims were injured.
Eileen McAlear, from the Fraser Health Authority, said nearby
hospitals were alerted and extra staff called in late Friday to
deal with the crash. She said the injuries ranged from minor to
serious leg fractures and head traumas.
Some of the victims were in stable condition at various hospitals.
The two youngest victims were transferred to BC Children's Hospital
in Vancouver.
The seventh-month-old child was listed in serious condition Saturday.
Counseling will be provided for all emergency medical personnel
and an Indo-Canadian social worker will be helping the family
members, McAlear said.
