Peru farmers who survived van crash vie to stay in Canada
3 survived collision in southern Ontario that killed 11 migrant workers
The Canadian Press
Posted: Oct 2, 2012 4:11 PM ET
Last Updated: Oct 2, 2012 5:02 PM ET
Two Peruvian migrant workers who survived a horrific crash that killed 11 people in southern Ontario say they fear they'll be sent back to their homeland.
Juan Ariza and Javier Abelardo Alba-Medina were among 13 poultry farm workers in a van that drove through a stop sign and into the path of a truck in the rural community of Hampstead on Feb. 6.
Abelardo Javier Alba-Medina is one of only three migrant farm workers who survived a crash that killed 11 people in February. He and another survivor, Juan Ariza, said they fear having to return to Peru, where they could become financial burdens to their families due to their ongoing health-care needs. (Ivy Cuervo/CBC)Ten workers from the van and the truck driver were killed in one of the province's deadliest collisions.
Speaking Tuesday with the help of an interpreter, Ariza and Alba-Medina said they are still undergoing treatment for their injuries and worry they would become burdens for their families if forced to leave Canada.
The pair's health-care expenses have been covered by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board through Ontario's health insurance.
But workers's rights advocates say it's common for those benefits to be cut off once workers are sent back to their country, even though they may still be unable to work.
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