Regina Leader-Post

ONE LAST LOOK

- tjames@postmedia.com THIA JAMES

A visitor on Wednesday to Elgar Petersen Arena in Humboldt looks at the memorial to the Broncos that was placed at centre ice after the crash that killed 16 people travelling on the team’s bus April 6. The memorial is being removed this weekend.

The dimly lit rink at Elgar Petersen Arena has been a place for quiet reflection in the weeks since the bus carrying members of the Humboldt Broncos organizati­on collided with a semi-trailer, killing 16 people and injuring 13.

By the end of this week, the ice surface and the on-ice memorial will be removed.

Humboldt Broncos club president Kevin Garinger said there are plans to do something to permanentl­y memorializ­e the people who died and those who were injured in the April 6 highway crash.

He said the outpouring of support from all over the world has been “incredible” and the memorial itself is a testament to that fact.

“It’s certainly gone a long way to help us with being able to begin the healing process and obviously, we’re aware this has impacted people across the province and nation and anyone who has ever ridden on a bus has been impacted,” Garinger said on Wednesday.

“We know that there’s a need to heal, not just in Humboldt, but in so many ways, everywhere. So, that memorial has been really important for that.

“It’s been something that people have been able to share their respects and to provide gifts of flowers and written statements about their grief and their loss,” he continued.

Members of the community have had access to the ice surface, where bouquets of flowers line a carpeted walkway leading to the centre of the memorial. Handwritte­n messages of condolence on bristol boards are affixed to the glass surroundin­g the ice surface.

The City of Humboldt released a statement on Wednesday confirming that work to remove the ice — and along with it, the memorial — will begin on Friday morning.

Anyone wishing to pay their respects at the on-ice memorial will still be able to do so until 9 p.m. tonight.

The city said no events are planned in conjunctio­n with the removal of the ice surface.

Garinger said the announceme­nt on Wednesday affords people the time to pay their last respects at the site.

City manager Joe Day said the city kept the ice in place longer than it typically would, “out of respect for the funerals that were being held there.”

The contents of the memorial will be moved into storage while the ice is removed.

The city is in discussion with the Broncos about displaying or archiving them.

 ?? KAYLE NEIS ??
KAYLE NEIS
 ?? MICHELLE BERG ?? Guests arrive at Elgar Petersen Arena in Humboldt on April 12 for Tyler Bieber’s funeral, one of the victims in the Broncos bus crash. A temporary memorial at the arena is coming down this weekend and discussion­s are underway for the constructi­on of a...
MICHELLE BERG Guests arrive at Elgar Petersen Arena in Humboldt on April 12 for Tyler Bieber’s funeral, one of the victims in the Broncos bus crash. A temporary memorial at the arena is coming down this weekend and discussion­s are underway for the constructi­on of a...

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