A review into the Columbia Icefield rollover says neglected repairs were behind a brake failure that caused the deadly crash. The fatality inquiry was called after an Ice Explorer tour bus carrying 24 people crashed on July 18, 2020. Three people were killed after being thrown from the vehicle as it rolled 50 metres down a steep hill leading to the Athabasca Glacier. Fourteen others were hurt. In the report, the judge said one of the main contributing factors in the crash was a failing braking system. Ice Explorers are specialized vehicles that have been used in the Icefields since the 1980s. Only 24 exist, with 22 of them owned and operated by tour bus operator Brewster Inc. The vehicle involved in the crash, a 1999 Foremost Terra Bus, was found during the review to have worn components in the braking system. The inquiry found a driver of the bus five days before the crash had asked that it be looked at due to a braking issue, but that no “credible” evidence was given that the brakes were inspected or repaired. The Ice Explorer’s braking issues were masked during previous trips due to standard operating procedures to put the bus in six-wheel drive and engage the transmission lock-up before descending the hill, the judge said. That procedure enables the bus to use engine power to restrict speed when going down a hill. The Ice Explorer involved in the crash had been in neutral when it began the steep descent, the report said, which explained its “unusually high” speed before the crash. The bus was estimated to have reached between 41 and 49 km/h before the driver lost control – far greater than an Ice Explorer’s top powered speed of 14 km/h. The report said it was unclear if the driver failed to put the bus in gear or if the vehicle popped out of gear some other way. While the driver did try and use the emergency brakes, there was no evidence of effective braking at the scene. “In short, the brakes suffered a catastrophic failure because they were worn, improperly inspected and concerns with respect to the brakes functioning were not attended to,” the judge said. Other contributing factors in the deaths were listed as: In 2025, Brewsters Inc. pleaded guilty to two charges under Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Act and fined $475,000 for failing to mandate seatbelts and failing to control hazards. Additional recommendations based on the inquiry have been given to the company, as well as Alberta’s ministers of transportation and jobs. The full report can be found here.
