Communications problems along Highway 39, which may have complicated the emergency response to a bus crash that injured 20 on Wednesday, are a familiar issue for northern residents, the provincial legislator for Mackenzie, B.C., said. Kiel Giddens, the member of the legislature for Prince George-Mackenzie, said poor or non-existent cellphone coverage is part of life in northern British Columbia. “It’s something that northerners deal with on a regular basis and something that I’m certainly familiar with,” he said Thursday. A shuttle bus chartered by a contractor for a data centre company went off the highway near Mackenzie on Wednesday in a remote area known for spotty cellphone coverage, prompting a response involving 12 ambulances and the declaration of Code Orange mass casualty events at two hospitals. Northern Health issued an update on Thursday saying 15 of the 20 people assessed and treated in its facilities after the crash have since been discharged. One person was taken by air ambulance to another facility, while four were admitted to hospital, the health authority said, adding it would not provide any further updates on the status of patients in order to protect their privacy. Giddens said cell coverage quickly drops off when people leave Mackenzie, located about 180 kilometres north of Prince George, and head south on Highway 39. Cpl. Jennifer Cooper with North District RCMP has said the crash happened in an area with no cellphone reception and poor satellite coverage. She said first responders had difficulty with radio communications and information from the area was slow to come out during the initial emergency response. But Sgt. Michael McLaughlin, a media relations officer with the BC Highway Patrol, said he had no information to suggest radio issues were a problem in the investigation of the crash. “Any mass casualty event is going to be chaotic in the first instance — and that’s especially true in a small or remote community where resources are less plentiful,” he said in an email Thursday. “In spite of that, all casualties have received timely medical treatment and the investigation is proceeding satisfactorily and making good progress.” Giddens praised the emergency response to the crash and said that while the local hospital had limited resources to treat patients, their care and co-ordination in sending people to other hospitals as needed was “phenomenal.” He said the crash highlights the hardships northern and remote communities face. “We need to work together to support those living in the north and encourage both economic opportunity and safe transportation,” Giddens said. Ian Tait with Ambulance Paramedics of BC, a union representing about 6,000 ambulance paramedics and dispatchers, said issues with radio and cellphone reception in rural areas are a common complaint among members. “We struggle with communications like a lot of first responders,” he said of service in rural and remote areas, where some paramedics may still use analog radio systems and experience problems with radio and cellphone towers. BC Emergency Health Services did not immediately respond to a question Thursday about whether the 12 ambulances, six ground and six air, dispatched to the bus crash near Mackenzie had experienced any communications issues. An earlier statement from the service said an air ambulance took one person to hospital in serious condition, while six others were transported by ground ambulance to hospital, then airlifted to another facility. Of those six patients, two were in serious condition and four were in serious but stable condition. Another 13 patients in stable condition were transported by bus to hospital accompanied by advanced-care paramedics, the service said. The province has said about 38 per cent of B.C.’s highways lack cell service, with limited access to reliable power cited as a key barrier to expanding coverage. In 2023, the NDP government said it would provide $75 million through a program administered by the Northern Development Initiative Trust to fund projects expanding cellular service to another 550 kilometres of highway by 2027. This report by Marissa Birnie, The Canadian Press, was first published Nov. 5, 2026. — With files from CKPG
