Ontario van crash relatives to have flights covered
Written by on February 10th, 2012 in Latest News.
A government agency will cover travel costs for one family member of each of the 13 migrant workers involved in the deadly Hampstead, Ont., collision on Monday.
The Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board also said it was looking at each individual case to determine whether the children of the victims can also be flown to the province.
Ten migrant workers were killed and three were seriously injured when their 15-passenger van and a truck collided in a rural area near Stratford. The truck’s driver, a Canadian, was also killed.
The board declined a full interview, saying it wanted the focus to be on the families. It will pay for one family member of each Peruvian victim or survivor to glide to Ontario.
The WSIB had already said it would pay for the repatriation of the bodies, medical costs of the survivors and an undisclosed amount for lost wages and benefits.
WSIB spokeswoman Maura Murphy said she didn’t know what the final cost would be.
A prayer service will be held Friday at 7 p.m. for the victims of the crash at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Stratford.
The non-denominational service has been organized by the diocese of London.
The diocese says the service is for victims of the crash and their families, and to recognize emergency workers.
With files from The Canadian Press
