On Wednesday at midnight, GoFundMe's Humboldt Broncos page -- which was opened to help survivors and victims' loved ones after a tragic crash killed 16 people -- closed at over $15 million in donations. All things told, $15,185,300 was collected from 142,029 donations in over 80 countries, and the page became the second-biggest GoFundMe in the history of the website, with only the Time's Up Legal Defense Fund ($21.5 million) topping its number.
Since the April 6 bus crash there have been tributes by teams and visits to survivors, in addition to letters penned by NHL players to those that remain hospitalized. The donations from the campaign will be transferred to to Humboldt Memorial Fund Inc., a new nonprofit established in the wake of the crash. An advisory committee will be selected, and allocation of the money will be decided from there.
The page has a statement that reads: "First and foremost, the Broncos' volunteer board of directors would like to express their tremendous love and sincere gratitude to everyone who has generously donated time and money to support our organization and its families, as we navigate through this dark and heart-wrenching time."
The GoFundMe's original goal was $5,000 before being raised to $4 million. As of Tuesday, nine of the 14 survivors are still hospitalized with two in critical condition.
