Alberta meditation centre tent collapses in high winds, killing 1 and injuring dozens

BUSBY, Alta. — A Buddhist retreat northwest of Edmonton was set to continue after a tent collapsed in fierce winds, killing one and injuring dozens, a day before the 10-day event was to begin.

An organizer, who declined to be identified, said attendees had travelled far to participate and that officials with the Westlock Meditation Centre were discussing whether to adjust some of its lessons in light of the tragedy.

Winds and rain hit the area shortly before the collapse about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, the organizer said, and the storm was over in about an hour.

Around midday Thursday, a crumpled tent could be seen in the garden area of the monastery near Busby, Alta. Inside another tent still standing on the grounds, dozens of people in robes could be seen lining up, with volunteers preparing food inside.

RCMP Cpl. Troy Savinkoff said there were as many as 100 people in and around the tent that gave way.

Of those hurt, he said, several were seriously injured and there were about 50 with minor injuries ranging from bumps and bruises to broken bones.

“Ultimately, we hope to determine exactly what circumstances may have led to this,” he said.

“We do know, though, that extreme winds were a major contributing factor.”

A severe thunderstorm produced wind gusts of about 80 to 100 kilometres per hour in the area, said Alysa Pederson, a warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Local RCMP were assisted by officers from nearby detachments, as well as ambulance and fire crews. Occupational Health and Safety said it’s also investigating and staff have been at the site since Wednesday night.

The retreat organizer said the person who died was not Canadian but provided no other details about the individual.

He added many of those injured were seniors, who were recovering in hospital, though some were expected to be discharged Thursday. They were welcome to return to the centre to get help from on-site medical staff and psychologists, said the organizer.

The centre, run by the Edmonton Buddhist Research Institute, says on its website that it can accommodate more than 750 guests on its grounds. It includes gardens, residences for monks and nuns, accommodations for retreat guests, a formal meditation hall and a mausoleum.

The institute says it created the centre after retreats and cultural events at its main Truc Lam Monastery in Edmonton became so popular that it needed more space.

The annual, free retreat has welcomed hundreds of people from across Canada and the United States since 2007, said the organizer.

Mike Ellis, Alberta’s public safety and emergency services minister, said his heart goes out to the person who died and those injured.

“Alberta’s government expresses its deepest condolences to loved ones of the deceased and is here to support our first responders and the community during this difficult time,” he wrote on the social media platform X.

Electricity provider Fortis Alberta said it was working to restore power to some areas in Westlock County.

“There are several poles and wires down and trees on our power lines. Both the transmission and distribution services were damaged,” it said in a social media post.

On Aug. 1, 2009, a spectator was killed and 75 others were injured after fierce winds made a concert stage collapse at the annual Big Valley Jamboree country music festival in Camrose, Alta.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 1, 2024.

Fakiha Baig and Jack Farrell, The Canadian Press