The family of Omotayo Samuel-Pepple, a 49-year-old Nigerian woman who died after being struck by a bus in Winnipeg, Canada, is demanding answers about the circumstances surrounding her death and the response that followed.
Samuel-Pepple was waiting at a bus stop on September 16 when the vehicle crashed into her. She was rushed to the hospital with severe internal injuries and multiple fractures. Despite undergoing three surgeries, she went into cardiac arrest and later died.
Her sister, Mary Oloyede, said the family has been left with unanswered questions. “I would want to know if the driver was impaired. What actually happened? I know the police are still doing their investigation, but we are hoping there will be more information as time goes by,” she said.
Oloyede also expressed concern over the delay in communication, saying the family was only notified eight hours after the accident. “She was still conscious, she was still communicating at the scene,” she said.
“Even if I was not there presently, at least I would have gotten a friend or, you know, a church member. I should have notified people around her so that they get to the hospital, but nobody contacted me.”
Samuel-Pepple had moved to Canada in 2024 to study human resource management at the University of Manitoba.
According to her family, she had plans to bring her husband and three children — aged 14, 17, and 21 — from Nigeria to join her before the tragedy occurred.
Oloyede is urging authorities to hold the bus driver accountable and is calling on members of the public to come forward with any dashcam footage or information. “If you could share, please, at least I know it’s going to give the immediate family respite to know exactly what happened,” she said.
The case has raised questions about how authorities handled the aftermath. Shared Health, Manitoba’s provincial health authority, defended its process, saying, “With respect to policy, staff in the adult emergency department do not routinely call next of kin or emergency contacts for every person who presents to the emergency department.
The immediate priority of emergency department staff is to ensure that every patient receives the compassionate and timely care they need. Once staff were able to gather the necessary information, all efforts were made to make contact.”
Winnipeg police, however, stressed that notifying families is a priority. “We strive to do so in person and without delay. However, there are times when challenges arise — such as difficulties confirming the person’s identity, limited information about family members, or geographic barriers,” the service said. “In these cases, we may need help from outside agencies or other jurisdictions.”
The police also said the investigation into the crash remains ongoing. “Traffic collision investigations can be complex, often requiring scene reconstruction, video analysis, and interviews with witnesses,” a spokesperson noted.
Samuel-Pepple is survived by her husband, children, and mother, who is still struggling to come to terms with her death.
