A broadcaster in his first year as a play-by-play announcer for the Humboldt Broncos will be the first of 16 victims of last Friday’s bus crash to be laid to rest.
The funeral for Tyler Bieber will be held Thursday at 10 a.m. local time the Elgar Petersen Arena in Humboldt., Sask., where the Broncos played their home games.
Bieber worked for radio station CHBO and was with the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League team as it headed to the playoff game in Nipawin when the bus collided with a semi-trailer at a rural intersection north of Tisdale, Sask.
Of the 29 people on board, 16 have died, including Bieber, who also coached high school football and basketball.
WATCH: ‘Felt something was wrong’: Tyler Bieber’s friend explains how he learned of Humboldt Broncos crash
Thirteen were injured and the truck driver wasn’t hurt.
Team president Kevin Garinger said this is a time when everyone needs to pull together. “You can’t undo anything. We need to immediately work toward supporting each other,” he said. “People are hurting and that’s what we need to direct our energy toward.”
Two other funerals are scheduled for Friday.
Jacob Leicht, a left-winger, will have his service in Humboldt. Adam Herold, who would have turned 17 today, will have his funeral in his hometown of Montmartre.
WATCH: People enter Humboldt Arena for Tyler Bieber funeral
Players on the Broncos were from communities across Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba.