BOSTON (WBZ) ― Boston police and Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicle safety inspectors launched a school van sting Thursday in an effort to crack down on child transportation vehicles that are operating with violations, putting passengers at risk.
The sting is part of the 10th annual Operation Guardian Angel program in which police and inspectors pull over and inspect 7-D vans and station wagons on their way to schools and day care centers to drop the children off.
Police said in the past these stings have revealed numerous violations such as improper restraint of toddlers, over-crowding and unlicensed operators.
Currently, more than 40 states ban school students from being driven to and from school in both 12 and 15 passenger vans. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued repeated safety warnings specifically about 15-passenger vans because of their high propensity to roll over if overloaded.
The Ford E-350 15 Passenger Wagon received the lowest rating of 2-Stars (5 is best) for any vehicle on the road today by SaferCar.gov. You can view the van rollover ratings on the SaferCar.gov website and see the Rollover ratings in the 2×4 column of the report.
Alexis “Lexie” James, 10, killed when a 15-passenger van blew a tire and overturned while traveling in South Carolina. Lexie was ejected even through she was wearing a seat belt. The James family has since started a non-profit organization called the American Center for Van and Tire Safety to raise awareness on the dangers of these vans.
WASHINGTON - Patrick James was hours away from burying his 10-year-old daughter when he started to learn some disturbing things about her death.
Lexie James was killed in July when the van she was riding in spun out of control and flipped over four times on Interstate 26 in South Carolina. Though she was wearing a seat belt, Lexie was somehow thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene.
What James didn’t know, but would soon discover, was that tests have raised a number of safety questions about 15-passenger vans like the one in which Lexie was riding. The federal government, in fact, has issued four safety warnings about such vehicles since 2001.
“If they are so dangerous, why does the general public not know about this?” James asked himself over and over again.
In his grief, James decided to do whatever he could to make sure everyone knows the risks of climbing aboard one of the vehicles.
Van Angels has launched Facebook and MySpace sites. The Facebook group over 500 members as of this writing. Note: You must have a Facebook account to see the Van Angels group on Facebook.
The British Columbia Federation of Labour is calling for a ban on 15-passenger vans that are often used to transport farm workers.
The request comes after a WorkSafeBC investigation suggested a wide range of safety violations contributed to a deadly van crash in Abbotsford, B.C., in March 2007 that killed three farm workers and injured 14 others.
The van carrying 17 people rolled over on Highway 1 near Sumas in B.C.’s Fraser Valley. (CBC)
Passenger overloading, poor tire maintenance, the lack of seatbelts, inadequate driver qualification, road conditions and vehicle instability all played a role in the accident, WorkSafeBC said in a report released Thursday.
The contents of the report is proof that the safety of farm workers is being ignored, said B.C. Federation of Labour president Jim Sinclair.
“They are they are riding to work in death traps,” he said.
B.C. Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon reacted by promising a safety crackdown when the farming season gets underway this spring.
“Our vehicle inspectors will be out there targeting this sector again,” he said.
WorkSafeBC said the van, owned by RHA Enterprises, had numerous problems.
The report found there were only two seatbelts in the van, and some of the passengers were ejected when the vehicle flipped onto the median. It also found the 15-passenger van was carrying 17 people at the time of the crash.
“The driver of the van held a B.C. Class 5 driver’s licence; however the Motor Vehicle Act requires a commercial Class 4 licence to operate a commercial vehicle transporting more than 10, but fewer than 25 workers,” said the report.
The report said the following factors contributed to the loss of vehicle control:
“Poor visibility and the wet road and may have caused the driver … to steer into the shoulder of the highway.”
“Improperly inflated tires, with poor tread on the front tires may have permitted the passenger van to hydroplane on the wet road.”
“The driver of the passenger van lacked adequate knowledge and training to safely operate a 15-passenger vehicle in adverse conditions.”
“The risk of rollover for 15-passenger van increases when there are more than 10 occupants because the centre of gravity shifts towards the rear of the van.”
Roberta Ellis, the vice-president of the policy, investigations and review division of WorkSafeBC, said they are considering a penalty against the labour contractor who employed and transported the workers to farms in the Fraser Valley.
“The law allows for an administrative penalty of up to half-a-million dollars and so that’s the next stage for us. Orders are issued to the employer, the employer is advised the officer is recommending a penalty,” said Ellis.
The employer now has 70 days to file an appeal, said Ellis.
The report has also been submitted to the B.C. coroner’s office, which is expected to conduct its own inquest later this year. The case would then be turned over to police and the Crown to conduct their own investigation, which could result in criminal charges.
Van was carrying farm workers
The 15-passenger van owned by RHA Enterprises Ltd was carrying 16 farm workers plus the driver when it crashed on Highway 1 in Abbotsford during the early hours of March 7, 2007. The workers were heading east on Highway 1 toward Chilliwack.
“The vehicle collided with two transport trucks, rolled and landed on its roof on the highway median. It was raining heavily at the time, visibility was poor, and the roads were very wet,” said the report.
Amarjit Kaur Bal, Sarabjit Kaur Sidhu and Sukhwinder Kaur Punia all died. The 14 others in the van were injured, some of them seriously.
Most of the victims, whose ages ranged from the teens to over 50, were Indo-Canadian immigrants employed by the labour contractor on a casual basis to work on various Fraser Valley farms.
The crash prompted the provincial government to resume random safety checks of vehicles carrying farm workers.
In 2001, the then newly elected Liberal government cancelled a program that routinely inspected the vans.
At least seven people have died and at least 34 have been injured in accidents involving the transportation of farm workers in B.C. since that time.
Greetings! Due to the wonderful site vanangels.org, we found out about the dual rear wheel conversions, and are about to finish converting our first van. These are the pictures of what we have gone through to make the changes. We look forward to completing our other one after this, and to introducing other churches/organizations in our area to the concept!!! Thank you so much for your efforts. Feel free to contact us if you need. Take care, and may God Bless!!
Gerald
Dual Rear Wheel Van Conversion of 15-passenger Dodge Van
Our Church, Melrose Baptist Church in Roanoke, VA, decided not to waste our church assets by getting rid of our 15-passenger vans, but found a way to make a small investment in safety and reap big benefits in protecting our passengers by converting this Dodge 15-passenger van to dual rear wheels and making additional suspension enhancements. If you would like information about how to help your church be good stewards of what you’ve been blessed with, and protect your passengers, feel free to…
To the parents of the 7 Bathurst High School boys,
On January 11, 2008, your lives were changed forever. I know how you feel. On June 30, 2002, I lost my 17-year old daughter, Malori, in van rollover accident.
While Van Angels is an education and advocacy site, we also are very aware of the heartbreak that happens when you lose a child. I receive many emails from parents who lose children. I understand what you’re going through.
Today, know that I am praying for you. I’m watching the following video and thanking God for the wonderful kids you all have. I honor their memory and their legacy.
This is a MUST see video about the dangers of 15-passenger vans created by 60-Minutes. Loaded with authoritative tests and proof of the dangers. NOTE: At the end of the video, the reporter mentions a crash simulation video. Click here to watch the simulation.
EDMONTON - Edmonton’s public school district has plans in place to stop using the type of van that has been called “a death trap on wheels” and banned for school use in the United States. Seven basketball players and a teacher were killed in the same type of 15-passenger van in a highway crash in New Brunswick on the weekend. The Safety Forum, a Washington D.C.-based, consumer consulting group, calls the vehicle “a trap merely waiting an opportunity to spring on unwary passengers and drivers.”The 1997 Ford Club Wagon is one of a handful of 15-passenger van models that the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued four consumer safety advisories about between 2000 and 2005, more than for any other vehicle type. The Edmonton district decided in December to ban schools from transporting students in 15-passenger vans effective Sept. 1, 2008, spokeswoman Jane Farrell said Monday.
The van carrying 17 people rolled over on Highway 1 near Sumas in B.C.’s Fraser Valley. 