There is a little voice in the back of Jason Tatarnic乌鸦传媒檚 head that yells at him every time he gets on a bus, reminding him about the time he almost lost his life on a junior A hockey road-trip.
It乌鸦传媒檚 a voice that乌鸦传媒檚 gotten a lot louder this week, in the wake of a horrible bus accident in Saskatchewan that claimed the lives of 16 people connected with the Humboldt Broncos.
Tatarnic has watched the news coverage and seen the photos, and heard from members of the Woodstock Slammers who were on a bus with him in 2007, a bus that flipped in the snow on the way to a game in Prince Edward Island.
乌鸦传媒淚t was a neutral-site game and it was windy with whiteout conditions,乌鸦传媒� Tatarnic recalled. 乌鸦传媒淥ur tire went off the road, kind of got caught and away we went.
乌鸦传媒淲e were fortunate there was a lot of fresh snow on the ground, so when the bus flipped we weren乌鸦传媒檛 getting dragged over hard ground. The windows popped open and we got a ton of snow in the bus, but it was soft snow and we didn乌鸦传媒檛 get any injuries that way. And we slid perfectly through two concrete barriers. What are the odds of a bus sliding perfectly between two concrete barriers?乌鸦传媒�
According to a news report from that day, 22 players, five team officials and the driver were on the bus when it flipped near Days Corner, PEI.
乌鸦传媒淲hen I looked to the back of the bus when we came to a stop, I wasn乌鸦传媒檛 expecting to see乌鸦传媒� a good sight,乌鸦传媒� Tatarnic admitted. 乌鸦传媒淏ut things worked out.乌鸦传媒�
The report mentions Tatarnic sustaining minor cuts. Assistant coach Bob Vail had to be freed from the bus by the Jaws of Life and airlifted to hospital in critical condition. But he eventually pulled through, leaving the Tatarnic to consider the what ifs of life.
What if the bus hit one of those concrete barriers flush. What if Woodstock乌鸦传媒檚 opponent that night hadn乌鸦传媒檛 been following just a few minutes behind, arriving on the scene quickly to aid the Slammers and summon help.
What if, what if, what if.
乌鸦传媒淧layers love to play and coaches love to coach and travel is part of being in junior hockey,乌鸦传媒� Tatarnic said. 乌鸦传媒淚t took a while, but the first time I had to jump back on the bus in Woodstock, it was nerve-wracking. It wasn乌鸦传媒檛 easy, but we got over it. It乌鸦传媒檚 not even close to what happened in Humboldt in terms of the outcome, but it乌鸦传媒檚 always in the back of your mind. Even to this day, I have thoughts whenever I jump on a bus.
乌鸦传媒淚t was tough for me to get back on the bus and tough for my players, and I乌鸦传媒檝e had some of them reach out to me this week expressing how lucky we were.乌鸦传媒�
Tatarnic hopes some good can come out of a very bad situation, starting with the design of the buses that ferry hockey teams from place to place.
乌鸦传媒淢aybe one thing is how they乌鸦传媒檙e built, and why do we need all those windows and why can乌鸦传媒檛 air bags can乌鸦传媒檛 be part of a bus?乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淲hat乌鸦传媒檚 the reason for seat-belts not being on coaches? Why can乌鸦传媒檛 we make buses safer? Maybe that could have saved one or two live in Humboldt, and maybe it乌鸦传媒檚 time we started asking those questions.乌鸦传媒�
Honestly, it乌鸦传媒檚 a wonder these accidents don乌鸦传媒檛 happen more often. Not to the degree of the Humboldt crash, but given the miles hockey teams cover every year in inclement weather as they criss-cross the provinces, the risk is constant.
Tatarnic乌鸦传媒檚 Chilliwack Chiefs make winter road trips to Prince George, Vernon, Penticton, Salmon Arm, West Kelowna, Wenatchee, Trail, Merritt and the Coquihalla Highway is so bad its the subject of a TV show called Highway Thru Hell.
乌鸦传媒淥ur accident changed how we traveled in Woodstock, where we didn乌鸦传媒檛 hesitate to cancel games because of weather,乌鸦传媒� Tatarnic said. 乌鸦传媒淚 look at the travel schedule we have now, and I乌鸦传媒檇 like to see changes. I know you can乌鸦传媒檛 accommodate everything, but we have teams going to the Interior and I think those games should be played as early in the season as possible to avoid the winter months.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 hard to see how anything good can come of this, but maybe there are things we should be looking at.乌鸦传媒�
