The community of Laval today mourns the victims of the Saint Marie daycare center, as the accounts of people who were present at the time the bus hit the building come to light.
2 children were killed and 8 were injured when the driver of a public transportation bus crashed the vehicle into the daycare yesterday morning.
Mike Haddad, is one of the parents who subdued the bus driver and also helped rescue the children.
I arrived at 8:30 the daycare, like every morning, I parked my car and as I was unbuckling my son's seatbelt, I turn my head and just see the bus driving fast and towards the building. As I hit the building I don't forget that there were children looking out the window. The first thing I see is the driver getting up and stripping, then he attacks me. The bus door was half stuck, he couldn't get out. I just opened it to get him out and I had to kick him to get him under control. I asked another parent to hold the man tight. Then I slid under the bus to get the children out, because I heard a little girl's voice asking for help. I told her: "my child, I will pull you out, be strong". Then I saw a child, who was in the back with a piece of wood on top of him. The child could not breathe. The piece of wood was in his face, every time he pulled, he couldn't get it out. I told him, "you're going to be fine, you're going to be strong, hold on tight". But the pressure was so strong that I had to let go, but finally I managed to free him by pulling with all my strength. Then a policewoman came and ordered me to get out, I didn't want to get out.
After this strong story, the man cries with impotence, because although he was able to free the child, he could not reach the other girl who was trapped under the bus. According to him there was no way to get her out.