Inquiry to hear about tour bus rollover at Columbia Icefield that killed three
The inquiry examines causes including brake issues and lack of seatbelt enforcement after three deaths and 14 serious injuries in the 2020 Columbia Icefield bus crash.
- The inquiry opens today in Jasper National Park into the deaths of three people on a tour bus at the Columbia Icefield, with Justice Vaughn Myers expected to hear brake inspection evidence.
- Brewster Inc. pleaded guilty to two charges under Alberta's Occupational Health and Safety Act and was fined $475,000 for failing to mandate seatbelts and control hazards.
- The bus rolled about 50 metres down an embankment after the Ice Explorer lost control on a road to the Athabasca Glacier on July 18, 2020, seriously injuring 14 people.
- A fatality inquiry cannot assign blame but makes recommendations to prevent similar deaths; Icefield tours paused then resumed after seatbelt additions and driver training changes.
- Reported by The Canadian Press on Oct. 17, 2025, Bill Graveland covered the inquiry as current coverage of the fatal tour bus rollover at Columbia Icefield.
34 Articles
34 Articles

'Catastrophic': Tour bus had brake problems before deadly Columbia Icefield rollover
JASPER, ALBERTA, CANADA — A fatality inquiry heard Friday the driver of a tour bus complained about his brakes just days before it tumbled down an embankment in Jasper National Park, killing three people.
JASPER, ALBERTA, CANADA — On Friday, a commission of inquiry learned that the driver of a tourist coach had complained of his brakes only a few days before the fall of a slope in Jasper National Park, killing three people. The court also learned that the car Ice Explorer had been maintained by Wajax, a heavy vehicle repair and maintenance company, two months before his loss of control on a road leading to the Athabasca Glacier, Columbia Icefield…
‘Catastrophic’: Tour bus had brake problems before deadly Columbia Icefield rollover
JASPER, ALBERTA, CANADA — A fatality inquiry heard Friday the driver of a tour bus complained about his brakes just days before it tumbled down an embankment in Jasper National Park, killing three people. Court also heard the Ice Explorer bus had been serviced by Wajax, a company that offers repairs and maintenance for heavy-duty vehicles, two months before it lost control on a road leading to the Athabasca Glacier at the Columbia Icefield in Ju…
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