B.C. high school volleyball team returns home after highway crash

All 10 teenage girls on a high school volleyball team from Prince George, B.C., have returned home after the passenger van they were travelling in crashed on a highway near Cache Creek on Tuesday. 

School superintendent Marylin Marquis-Forster said all the players were home by 3:30 Wednesday afternoon. 

"Thirty-six hours ago this group of folks were thinking about their strategy and hoping to win a championship," Marquis-Forster told Radio West host Sarah Penton.

"And today, we're happy to be alive and happy to be home with the people we care about."

The van carrying 16- and 17-year-old girls from College Heights Secondary School volleyball team was en route to Powell River to compete in the provincial AAA high school championships when the driver swerved to avoid something on the road and drove into the ditch.

One girl was flown to hospital by air ambulance after the crash. As of Wednesday morning, four of the students were still in hospital. 

'We'll take the lead from them'

Marquis-Forster said the accident is still under investigation, and she couldn't say if the students were wearing seatbelts or not at the time. She did clarify that the coach was at the wheel at the time of the crash. 

The school district will likely re-examine its safety procedures once the investigation has wrapped up, she added, including policies for school trips. 

"Whenever any of these things happen, the investigation process has to roll out and then the implications roll out," she said. 

The school district has deployed its critical response team to give updates to those who want it, Marquis-Forster said. Thursday morning, the assistant superintendent will be at the school with the critical response team to debrief with the girls and their parents and assess their needs. 

As for the rest of the season, Marquis-Forster said it's probably over for the girls, since they were travelling to the provincial championships. 

"I'm sure these athletes will someday be ready to compete again, but we'll take the lead from them for those decisions."