A Saskatchewan judge has ruled that the families of those who died in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash should get a larger cut of the millions raised by a GoFundMe campaign.
On Wednesday, Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Neil Gabrielson accepted the recommendation of a committee formed to look at how the money should be divided between the affected families.
“Everyone has proven that together, we can face adversity and move on … Humboldt Strong,” said Gabrielson in court.
In April, 16 people died and 13 people were injured when the Broncos team bus collided with a semi-trailer as it travelled to a semi-final playoff game.
After the crash, an online fundraiser on the website GoFundMe brought in $15 million.
The five-person committee overseeing the fund recommended that families of those who died in the crash should get $50,000 more than those who survived. Under the recommended plan, each survivor would receive $425,000 while families of those who died would receive $475,000. That does not include a $50,000 interim payment each family received earlier this year.
‘Huge difference in emotional circumstances’
The committee’s report noted the majority of families said they wanted the money to be divided equally 29 ways.
The committee recommended against that proposal, citing “a huge difference in emotional circumstances between most of the families who lost a loved one and most of the families who did not.”
More than $500,000 of the money raised went toward payment processing. That, along with the interim payments, left approximately $13 million.
The money comes in addition to coverage from Saskatchewan Government Insurance, which provides funding for counselling, funeral expenses and payments to surviving spouses.
Those injured in the crash are eligible for up to $6.9 million in coverage for medical and rehabilitation expenses.
The driver of the semi-truck, Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, is facing 16 counts of dangerous driving causing death and 13 counts of dangerous driving causing bodily injury in connection to the crash. He has not entered a plea.