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None injured after early morning bus shooting in Stoney Creek
Hamilton police are investigating a shooting in Stoney Creek that saw an HSR bus struck by several rounds of bullets around 1 a.m. Wednesday.
Authorities say an HSR bus was struck by gunfire at the intersection of Mud Street West and Upper Centennial Parkway.
There was no one on the bus at the time except for the driver, who was not injured.
The union representing bus drivers in the city says it could have been much worse, and they want more protection.
“When I started here you’d hear of somebody with a BB gun shooting a window on a bus, but open gunfire – whoever fired these just had total disregard for human life,” said ATU president Eric Tuck.
“Once he was stopped at the red light, the driver of the bus was looking to turn northbound onto Upper Centennial, that’s when the driver of the bus heard several loud bangs similar to gunfire. The driver pulled over and observed several holes within the bus caused by gunshots,” said Const. Trevor McKenna.
Police say at this time, there is no indication the bus was intentionally targeted. And there are no suspect or vehicle descriptions right now.
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“Thankfully the driver was the only person on the bus and no injuries have been reported,” said McKenna.
The president of the union that represents bus operators in the city says that they are on the frontlines everyday and sometimes come across dangerous situations. But he says this incident is especially angering and concerning because his colleague was faced with a potentially life-threatening situation.
“This tragedy could have been much worse. Obviously the driver was very impacted to have been exposed and come that close to being shot. We can’t minimize this. If there had been any passengers on that bus, they likely would have been hit. That bus was riddled with gunfire,” said Tuck.
The union president is calling on city officials and the police to do their part in cracking down on gun crime in the city, and he is asking that drivers get better protection.
“We’ve been arguing for better protections on the bus as far as the driver’s shields. What we have right now is simply a spit guard and it’s not good enough,” said Tuck.
Ward 9 councillor Brad Clark says it’s up to the higher levels of government to address violent crime.
“There have been far too many incidents where people have been firing guns, and get arrested, and then they get released within hours. It’s incredibly frustrating and I think the police, the city and the senior levels of government really need to sit down and talk how we’re going to fix this,” said Clark.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 905-546-4883 or by email at shootingresponseteam@hamiltonpolice.ca
