Ontario Crash That Killed 10 Farm Workers, Public Inquest Declined

Coroner’s Office Determined Crash Was ‘Driver’s Error’, No Inquest Necessary

By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com

Ontario’s chief coroner said Monday that a public inquest isn’t necessary into the deadly crash that happened in southwestern Ontario, killing 10 migrant farm workers and a truck driver on Feb. 6, 2012.

The crash occurred in the hamlet of Hampstead, Ontario, when a 15-passenger van failed to stop and crossed the path of a transport truck, which killed 10 foreign farm workers and the truck driver. There were three farm works who survived the collision.

The coroner concluded that the crash was solely the result of the driver’s error. The decision was made after carful investigation of reviewing the deaths.

While the decision is final, the Agriculture Workers Alliance disagrees with the decision, saying that the inquest would have helped shed some light into the some of the difficulties that migrant farm workers face in Canada.