The power of a train, the tragedy of young people killed, now all on video. It is ironic how much of our law regarding the automobile and safety revolve around trains and teen age driver wrecks. Today, we can pause and remember and say a prayer for safety.
Attorney Gordon Johnson
http://fishtail.tv
http://tbilaw.com
Date: 7/10/2009 2:32 PM
DAVID RUNK,Associated Press Writer
DETROIT (AP) — The car carrying five young people never slows as it approaches a rail crossing near Detroit, and drives right past a car that had been stopped there for several seconds — just before an Amtrak train rushes through the crossing.
Police released a copy of a surveillance video Friday that captured the crash a day earlier, in which the five people were killed after skirting the railroad gate about 20 miles west of Detroit. At the wheel, according to police and state records, was a 19-year-old man with a suspended license.
"There is no indication alcohol or anything else was involved other than bad judgment," Canton Township police spokesman Sgt. Mark Gajeski said.
Dan Broughton of Woodhaven, a Detroit suburb, was driving, Gajeski said. State records show he had a number of traffic violations, including speeding and disobeying a stop sign in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park on Jan. 7. His failure to show a driver's license April 1 in Woodhaven led a judge to suspend his license for one month — a suspension that began Wednesday.
Friends and family at Broughton's home declined to comment to an Associated Press reporter on Friday.
Authorities released more information Friday on the victims and audio from a 911 report of the crash. Gajeski said he expected that the medical examiner's office would run toxicology tests, which could take weeks, but police said there was no indication drugs played a factor.
Investigators said the crossing had a gate and flashing lights that were working when the car approached. Police said the train, which was carrying about 170 people, typically travels about 67 miles per hour at the site of the crash. It broadsided the black Ford Fusion and pushed it about a mile down the tracks.
Police said the train was traveling within the allowed speed limit.
"There is no one to be charged," Gajeski said. "From witness statements and the video, the person just ran the gate."
A day after the crash, memorials including a bouquet of white carnations were left at the crossing.
Canton Township police said the others killed were Sean Harris and Eddie Gross of Taylor and Terrence Harris of Stafford, Va. Family members say Sean was 19 and also lived in Detroit; Terrence was 21; and Gross was 17. The mother of 14-year-old Jessica Sadler said Thursday the girl was among those killed.
No one aboard the train was injured, Amtrak said.
Last year, 119 people died nationwide in Amtrak accidents, usually when trains struck vehicles or pedestrians at railroad crossings, according to figures from the Federal Railroad Administration. Eleven people died in train accidents of all types in Michigan in 2008, according to Federal Railroad Administration data.
___
Associated Press Writers David N. Goodman in Woodhaven, Ben Leubsdorf in Canton Township, Corey Williams in Detroit and David Eggert in Lansing contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Summary
Date: 7/10/2009 2:32 PM
Slug: BC-US--Train Hits Car,7th Ld-Writethru
Headline: Video: Car doesn't slow before Mich. rail crossing
Source:
Byline: DAVID RUNK,Associated Press Writer
Copyright Holder: AP
Priority: r (4)
With Photo:
Dateline: DETROIT
Lead
Editors' Note: Eds: UPDATES with police releasing additional information about victims, detail of memorial at scene of crash.
Word Count: 503
File Name (Transref): L0892
Editorial Type: Lead
AP Category: a
Format: bx
Edit Mode : Cancel
DETROIT (AP) — The car carrying five young people never slows as it approaches a rail crossing near Detroit, and drives right past a car that had been stopped there for several seconds — just before an Amtrak train rushes through the crossing. Police released a copy of a surveillance video Friday that captured the crash a day earlier, in which the five people were killed after skirting the railroad gate about 20 miles west of Detroit. At the wheel, according to police and state records, was a 19-year-old man with a suspended license. "There is no indication alcohol or anything else was involved other than bad judgment," Canton Township police spokesman Sgt. Mark Gajeski said. Dan Broughton of Woodhaven, a Detroit suburb, was driving, Gajeski said. State records show he had a number of traffic violations, including speeding and disobeying a stop sign in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park on Jan. 7. His failure to show a driver's license April 1 in Woodhaven led a judge to suspend his license for one month — a suspension that began Wednesday. Friends and family at Broughton's home declined to comment to an Associated Press reporter on Friday. Authorities released more information Friday on the victims and audio from a 911 report of the crash. Gajeski said he expected that the medical examiner's office would run toxicology tests, which could take weeks, but police said there was no indication drugs played a factor. Investigators said the crossing had a gate and flashing lights that were working when the car approached. Police said the train, which was carrying about 170 people, typically travels about 67 miles per hour at the site of the crash. It broadsided the black Ford Fusion and pushed it about a mile down the tracks. Police said the train was traveling within the allowed speed limit. "There is no one to be charged," Gajeski said. "From witness statements and the video, the person just ran the gate." A day after the crash, memorials including a bouquet of white carnations were left at the crossing. Canton Township police said the others killed were Sean Harris and Eddie Gross of Taylor and Terrence Harris of Stafford, Va. Family members say Sean was 19 and also lived in Detroit; Terrence was 21; and Gross was 17. The mother of 14-year-old Jessica Sadler said Thursday the girl was among those killed. No one aboard the train was injured, Amtrak said. Last year, 119 people died nationwide in Amtrak accidents, usually when trains struck vehicles or pedestrians at railroad crossings, according to figures from the Federal Railroad Administration. Eleven people died in train accidents of all types in Michigan in 2008, according to Federal Railroad Administration data. ___ Associated Press Writers David N. Goodman in Woodhaven, Ben Leubsdorf in Canton Township, Corey Williams in Detroit and David Eggert in Lansing contributed to this report.
Suggested & Related
37770480ea8245d7919a003a9fbcf46dText
BC-US--Train Hits Car,8th Ld-Writethru
Suggested Related
Text View
Photo 0 0
Graphic View
Video View
Audio View
Interactive View
Looking Up ...
Looking Up ...
Monday, July 13, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
Our Most Precious Cargo, Our Most Solemn Responsibility
You would probably have to search for a very long time to find anyone who would not agree that the most precious commodity transported on the nation’s highways are our children. They are among our most vulnerable passengers. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children from 2 to 14 years old.
What is more disturbing is the number of school bus crashes which occur in the United States.
safeguard4kids, proponents of seat belts for school buses, lists these NHTSA statistics:
Since different organisations have their own ways of reporting, tracking and calculating school bus accidents and injuries, it is difficult to know how many children are actually injured in school bus accidents. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that school bus crash data is incomplete and that injuries cannot be reliably estimated.1 We do know, however, that lap-shoulder belts can make a significant impact on injury reduction.
* According to the April 2002 NHTSA Report to Congress, every day there are over 144 school bus accidents (26,000 per year) in America and more than 9,500 children are injured in school bus accidents each year.
* According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), there were an estimated 51,100 school bus-related injuries treated in U.S. emergency departments from 2001 to 2003, which averages to approximately 17,000 children injured in school bus accidents each year. This is the first study to describe nonfatal school bus–related injuries to U.S. children and teenagers treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments using a national sample. This study identified a much greater annual number of school bus–related injuries to children than reported previously.
* Data from the General Estimates System2 indicates that 13,000 people are injured annually in school bus crashes. Of those injured, 46 percent (5,980) were school bus occupants, 8 percent were school bus drivers, 38 percent were occupants of other vehicles, and fewer than 0.05 percent each were pedestrians, pedal cyclists and non-motorists.
Additionally:
According to 2005 data from NHTSA, an average of 21 school age children die in school transportation-related traffic crashes each year. Six of those deaths occur in school transportation vehicles. This number applies only to daily school routes and does not account for extracurricular activities that take place outside of normal school hours.
When I began posting headlines related to school bus incidents and accidents, I went very quickly from concern to shock at the number of school bus accidents occurring every day in this country. I have read follow up stories of drunk driving arrests among bus drivers and wondered why such stories do not elicit the sort of nationwide outrage that other media stories do. Not only are children the most precious cargo on the road, shouldn’t we trust those responsible for their safety to be beyond reproach character-wise?
What baffles me as well is reading over and over of school-buses being rear-ended by drivers who do not seem to pay much heed to those flashing lights or FREQUENT STOPS warnings, not to mention that a school bus should raise within in all of us a heightened sense of caution and care. I cannot even deliver an analogy as I can not imagine anything more fragile and valuable than our children.
There are plenty of stories of pickups and SUVs colliding with school buses in icy weather. Living in the midwest, I have myself observed the invincible driving attitudes of some of these drivers when road conditions are dangerous. They may think they can tackle an arctic storm without slowing down, but headlines say otherwise.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but it is a fact of life that certain times on week days, we can expect that school buses are out on the road. Before we get behind the wheel of our cars and stick the keys in the ignition, we should take a moment to confirm in our minds that there is precious cargo out on those roads and it is the responsibility of each and everyone of us to make sure that cargo is safely delivered to its destination.
Again and again, seat belt regulations for school buses fall through the cracks in state legislation. That means that the burden of the responsibility lies on the shoulders of all of us.
thelegaltimes.net staff article ©2009
What is more disturbing is the number of school bus crashes which occur in the United States.
safeguard4kids, proponents of seat belts for school buses, lists these NHTSA statistics:
Since different organisations have their own ways of reporting, tracking and calculating school bus accidents and injuries, it is difficult to know how many children are actually injured in school bus accidents. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that school bus crash data is incomplete and that injuries cannot be reliably estimated.1 We do know, however, that lap-shoulder belts can make a significant impact on injury reduction.
* According to the April 2002 NHTSA Report to Congress, every day there are over 144 school bus accidents (26,000 per year) in America and more than 9,500 children are injured in school bus accidents each year.
* According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), there were an estimated 51,100 school bus-related injuries treated in U.S. emergency departments from 2001 to 2003, which averages to approximately 17,000 children injured in school bus accidents each year. This is the first study to describe nonfatal school bus–related injuries to U.S. children and teenagers treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments using a national sample. This study identified a much greater annual number of school bus–related injuries to children than reported previously.
* Data from the General Estimates System2 indicates that 13,000 people are injured annually in school bus crashes. Of those injured, 46 percent (5,980) were school bus occupants, 8 percent were school bus drivers, 38 percent were occupants of other vehicles, and fewer than 0.05 percent each were pedestrians, pedal cyclists and non-motorists.
Additionally:
According to 2005 data from NHTSA, an average of 21 school age children die in school transportation-related traffic crashes each year. Six of those deaths occur in school transportation vehicles. This number applies only to daily school routes and does not account for extracurricular activities that take place outside of normal school hours.
When I began posting headlines related to school bus incidents and accidents, I went very quickly from concern to shock at the number of school bus accidents occurring every day in this country. I have read follow up stories of drunk driving arrests among bus drivers and wondered why such stories do not elicit the sort of nationwide outrage that other media stories do. Not only are children the most precious cargo on the road, shouldn’t we trust those responsible for their safety to be beyond reproach character-wise?
What baffles me as well is reading over and over of school-buses being rear-ended by drivers who do not seem to pay much heed to those flashing lights or FREQUENT STOPS warnings, not to mention that a school bus should raise within in all of us a heightened sense of caution and care. I cannot even deliver an analogy as I can not imagine anything more fragile and valuable than our children.
There are plenty of stories of pickups and SUVs colliding with school buses in icy weather. Living in the midwest, I have myself observed the invincible driving attitudes of some of these drivers when road conditions are dangerous. They may think they can tackle an arctic storm without slowing down, but headlines say otherwise.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but it is a fact of life that certain times on week days, we can expect that school buses are out on the road. Before we get behind the wheel of our cars and stick the keys in the ignition, we should take a moment to confirm in our minds that there is precious cargo out on those roads and it is the responsibility of each and everyone of us to make sure that cargo is safely delivered to its destination.
Again and again, seat belt regulations for school buses fall through the cracks in state legislation. That means that the burden of the responsibility lies on the shoulders of all of us.
thelegaltimes.net staff article ©2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Mexican bus crash kills 11, some Americans
Date: 3/17/2009 4:23 PM
By OSCAR VILLALBA
Associated Press Writer
PIEDRAS NEGRAS, Mexico (AP) — A tractor-trailer slammed into a bus carrying Canadian and U.S. tourists on a northern Mexico highway, killing 11, officials said Tuesday.
Local officials said eight Americans are among the dead, and the U.S. Embassy has confirmed the identities of four, spokeswoman Liz Detter said. The Embassy could not release their names because next of kin had not been notified.
"Our heartfelt condolences go out to all those killed and injured in this tragedy," Detter said.
Alberto de la Rosa Vizcaino, Civil Protection director in the city of Saltillo, said three Canadians were killed in Monday's crash.
Canadian foreign affairs spokesman Alain Cacchione said Canadians were involved in the crash but he declined to provide further details for privacy reasons.
One of those killed was Ana Maria Bujanos, a middle-school reading teacher from Brownsville, Texas.
Her husband, Chris Bujanos, said a friend told him Tuesday morning after hearing his wife named as one of the victims on the radio, and a U.S. consulate representative called him to confirm her death.
"Tomorrow would have been our 33rd wedding anniversary, that's why I'm taking it so hard," Bujanos said.
Ana Maria Bujanos, 56, who taught at Cummings Middle School in Brownsville, was traveling to Zacatecas with another teacher from Harlingen during their spring break.
She had taken similar trips for years, her husband said. The bus picked them up in Harlingen on Monday morning and was scheduled to return Thursday evening, he said.
Coahuila state police commander Armando Santana said 11 people were killed in the crash and 15 injured. The injured were taken to three hospitals in Coahuila.
Santana said the bus was carrying retirees from McAllen, Texas, to the northern state of Zacatecas. Detter said 19 Americans were on board.
The truck driver apparently lost control and swerved into the bus's lane on a highway outside Saltillo, Santana said. He said the bus driver was killed and the truck driver was among the injured.
Duane DeBruyne, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, said his agency is supporting an investigation.
"The Mexican state and local police will be the lead authorities," DeBruyne said.
____
Associated Press writers Christopher Sherman in McAllen, Texas, and Alexandra Olson in Mexico City contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
By OSCAR VILLALBA
Associated Press Writer
PIEDRAS NEGRAS, Mexico (AP) — A tractor-trailer slammed into a bus carrying Canadian and U.S. tourists on a northern Mexico highway, killing 11, officials said Tuesday.
Local officials said eight Americans are among the dead, and the U.S. Embassy has confirmed the identities of four, spokeswoman Liz Detter said. The Embassy could not release their names because next of kin had not been notified.
"Our heartfelt condolences go out to all those killed and injured in this tragedy," Detter said.
Alberto de la Rosa Vizcaino, Civil Protection director in the city of Saltillo, said three Canadians were killed in Monday's crash.
Canadian foreign affairs spokesman Alain Cacchione said Canadians were involved in the crash but he declined to provide further details for privacy reasons.
One of those killed was Ana Maria Bujanos, a middle-school reading teacher from Brownsville, Texas.
Her husband, Chris Bujanos, said a friend told him Tuesday morning after hearing his wife named as one of the victims on the radio, and a U.S. consulate representative called him to confirm her death.
"Tomorrow would have been our 33rd wedding anniversary, that's why I'm taking it so hard," Bujanos said.
Ana Maria Bujanos, 56, who taught at Cummings Middle School in Brownsville, was traveling to Zacatecas with another teacher from Harlingen during their spring break.
She had taken similar trips for years, her husband said. The bus picked them up in Harlingen on Monday morning and was scheduled to return Thursday evening, he said.
Coahuila state police commander Armando Santana said 11 people were killed in the crash and 15 injured. The injured were taken to three hospitals in Coahuila.
Santana said the bus was carrying retirees from McAllen, Texas, to the northern state of Zacatecas. Detter said 19 Americans were on board.
The truck driver apparently lost control and swerved into the bus's lane on a highway outside Saltillo, Santana said. He said the bus driver was killed and the truck driver was among the injured.
Duane DeBruyne, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, said his agency is supporting an investigation.
"The Mexican state and local police will be the lead authorities," DeBruyne said.
____
Associated Press writers Christopher Sherman in McAllen, Texas, and Alexandra Olson in Mexico City contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Police: Students, others hurt in NY bus crash
Date: 2/25/2009
MIDDLE ISLAND, N.Y. (AP) — Police in New York say 17 students and their driver were taken to hospitals after a school bus collided with a truck on Long Island. None of the injuries is considered serious.
The wreck occurred around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in Middle Island. The bus was from the Longwood School District. School district officials and the bus company haven't returned phone calls seeking comment.
Police say the students were involved in an after-school activity, but they are unsure what it was. The victims' names have not been released.
The front end of the truck was badly damaged, and many of the bus' windows were smashed. The truck driver also has been hospitalized.
A police officer was hit by a car while directing traffic surrounding the accident, suffering a serious but not life-threatening back injury. The car's driver was not charged with any crime.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
MIDDLE ISLAND, N.Y. (AP) — Police in New York say 17 students and their driver were taken to hospitals after a school bus collided with a truck on Long Island. None of the injuries is considered serious.
The wreck occurred around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in Middle Island. The bus was from the Longwood School District. School district officials and the bus company haven't returned phone calls seeking comment.
Police say the students were involved in an after-school activity, but they are unsure what it was. The victims' names have not been released.
The front end of the truck was badly damaged, and many of the bus' windows were smashed. The truck driver also has been hospitalized.
A police officer was hit by a car while directing traffic surrounding the accident, suffering a serious but not life-threatening back injury. The car's driver was not charged with any crime.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
DA: No charges in Pa. boy's horseplay death
Date: 2/10/2009
By MICHAEL RUBINKAM
Associated Press Writer
EASTON, Pa. (AP) — The death of a 12-year-old boy who was hit by a bus outside school as he horsed around with friends was a tragic accident that does not warrant criminal charges, a prosecutor said Tuesday.
Dakota Galusha was gently shoved by a 13-year-old friend and stumbled backward over a curb and under the rear wheels of the bus before class two weeks ago, Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli said.
"There is no evidence that the deceased and (the student) had any personal problems between them. To the contrary, it appears that they had a well-known, friendly relationship," Morganelli said.
The student's name was not released.
Dakota's mother had just dropped him off at Northampton Middle School outside Allentown when the accident occurred at about 7:15 a.m. on Jan. 26. Dakota kiddingly told his friend he had put something in his pond and, as a reply, the boy gave Dakota a push, the prosecutor said.
The bus that hit Dakota was going 3 to 5 mph as it approached the curb to drop students off. Its rear wheels ran over the boy's midsection.
A coroner ruled Dakota's death a homicide. But Morganelli said the evidence did not support a criminal charge of involuntary manslaughter, which requires reckless or grossly negligent behavior where a death could reasonably be foreseen.
"I do not find that (the boy) could have foreseen that his friendly push of his friend would place his friend in danger of death," Morganelli said. "Clearly, the untimely death of 12-year-old Dakota Galusha was tragic. It was not, however, the result of criminally culpable conduct."
Morganelli said Galusha's parents, Kendall and Dina Galusha, agreed.
"They expressed no anger (toward the child) whatsoever," he said.
Dakota, who went by the nickname "Kota," played baseball, football and basketball and liked to snowboard. He was a staunch New York Giants fan.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
By MICHAEL RUBINKAM
Associated Press Writer
EASTON, Pa. (AP) — The death of a 12-year-old boy who was hit by a bus outside school as he horsed around with friends was a tragic accident that does not warrant criminal charges, a prosecutor said Tuesday.
Dakota Galusha was gently shoved by a 13-year-old friend and stumbled backward over a curb and under the rear wheels of the bus before class two weeks ago, Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli said.
"There is no evidence that the deceased and (the student) had any personal problems between them. To the contrary, it appears that they had a well-known, friendly relationship," Morganelli said.
The student's name was not released.
Dakota's mother had just dropped him off at Northampton Middle School outside Allentown when the accident occurred at about 7:15 a.m. on Jan. 26. Dakota kiddingly told his friend he had put something in his pond and, as a reply, the boy gave Dakota a push, the prosecutor said.
The bus that hit Dakota was going 3 to 5 mph as it approached the curb to drop students off. Its rear wheels ran over the boy's midsection.
A coroner ruled Dakota's death a homicide. But Morganelli said the evidence did not support a criminal charge of involuntary manslaughter, which requires reckless or grossly negligent behavior where a death could reasonably be foreseen.
"I do not find that (the boy) could have foreseen that his friendly push of his friend would place his friend in danger of death," Morganelli said. "Clearly, the untimely death of 12-year-old Dakota Galusha was tragic. It was not, however, the result of criminally culpable conduct."
Morganelli said Galusha's parents, Kendall and Dina Galusha, agreed.
"They expressed no anger (toward the child) whatsoever," he said.
Dakota, who went by the nickname "Kota," played baseball, football and basketball and liked to snowboard. He was a staunch New York Giants fan.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Investigators focus on driver in tour bus crash
Date: 2/3/2009
By OSKAR GARCIA
Associated Press Writer
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Survivors of a tour bus crash that killed seven people in Arizona last week told investigators that the driver might have been distracted before the accident, a state official said Monday.
"We are focusing on the driver possibly being distracted for some unknown reason," said Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman Lt. James Warriner.
He did not elaborate on what the distraction might have been.
Three survivors of Friday's crash near Hoover Dam have been interviewed, Warriner said.
Investigators have been unable to speak to the 48-year-old hospitalized driver of the bus because of his injuries. They are checking his driving history, medical records and certification to operate the bus, Warriner said.
The driver, 48-year-old Han Dong of Rosemead, Calif., remains in fair condition at University Medical Center in Las Vegas. Investigators said they don't believe he was impaired at the time of the crash.
The tour guide and six Chinese tourists were killed in the crash. Ten others were injured.
The California Public Utilities Commission on Monday suspended the charter certificate of D.W. Tour & Charter of San Gabriel, Calif., the company that owned the tour bus.
"Effectively, they cannot operate," commission spokesman Christopher Chow said, adding that the suspension applies to operations in California.
The suspension occurred because the company's liability insurance expired Monday, he said.
Pete Kotowski, lead investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board, said that the company passed its most recent federal review in August 2007. Six months earlier, a review showed the company had insufficient drug and alcohol testing and policies for drivers.
The company, which owns two buses and employs four drivers, is listed as "satisfactory" by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
The company did not immediately return calls or respond to an e-mail seeking comment.
The 30-seat bus involved in the crash was smaller than a typical tour bus — similar in size to an airport car-rental shuttle — and did not have seat belts, Kotowski said. It was federally certified for travel on all U.S. highways, he said.
The accident occurred as the bus was returning to Las Vegas after a trip to the Grand Canyon.
The bus drifted onto the highway's shoulder and the driver overcorrected, sending it across two traffic lanes and into a gravel median, Kotowski said. It rolled over at least once before resting on its side. Most passengers were thrown out of the vehicle's windows.
Kotowski did not say how fast the bus was traveling. The speed limit on the straight stretch of road is 65 mph.
Tourists on the bus were Chinese nationals who had flown from Shanghai to San Francisco and had most recently been in Las Vegas, the Arizona Department of Public Safety has said.
___
Associated Press Staff writers Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Ariz., and Ken Ritter in Las Vegas contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
By OSKAR GARCIA
Associated Press Writer
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Survivors of a tour bus crash that killed seven people in Arizona last week told investigators that the driver might have been distracted before the accident, a state official said Monday.
"We are focusing on the driver possibly being distracted for some unknown reason," said Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman Lt. James Warriner.
He did not elaborate on what the distraction might have been.
Three survivors of Friday's crash near Hoover Dam have been interviewed, Warriner said.
Investigators have been unable to speak to the 48-year-old hospitalized driver of the bus because of his injuries. They are checking his driving history, medical records and certification to operate the bus, Warriner said.
The driver, 48-year-old Han Dong of Rosemead, Calif., remains in fair condition at University Medical Center in Las Vegas. Investigators said they don't believe he was impaired at the time of the crash.
The tour guide and six Chinese tourists were killed in the crash. Ten others were injured.
The California Public Utilities Commission on Monday suspended the charter certificate of D.W. Tour & Charter of San Gabriel, Calif., the company that owned the tour bus.
"Effectively, they cannot operate," commission spokesman Christopher Chow said, adding that the suspension applies to operations in California.
The suspension occurred because the company's liability insurance expired Monday, he said.
Pete Kotowski, lead investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board, said that the company passed its most recent federal review in August 2007. Six months earlier, a review showed the company had insufficient drug and alcohol testing and policies for drivers.
The company, which owns two buses and employs four drivers, is listed as "satisfactory" by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
The company did not immediately return calls or respond to an e-mail seeking comment.
The 30-seat bus involved in the crash was smaller than a typical tour bus — similar in size to an airport car-rental shuttle — and did not have seat belts, Kotowski said. It was federally certified for travel on all U.S. highways, he said.
The accident occurred as the bus was returning to Las Vegas after a trip to the Grand Canyon.
The bus drifted onto the highway's shoulder and the driver overcorrected, sending it across two traffic lanes and into a gravel median, Kotowski said. It rolled over at least once before resting on its side. Most passengers were thrown out of the vehicle's windows.
Kotowski did not say how fast the bus was traveling. The speed limit on the straight stretch of road is 65 mph.
Tourists on the bus were Chinese nationals who had flown from Shanghai to San Francisco and had most recently been in Las Vegas, the Arizona Department of Public Safety has said.
___
Associated Press Staff writers Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Ariz., and Ken Ritter in Las Vegas contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Investigators comb tour bus crash site for clues
Date: 2/1/2009
By FELICIA FONSECA and AMANDA LEE MYERS
Associated Press Writers
DOLAN SPRINGS, Ariz. (AP) — Federal investigators on Sunday closely examined a stretch of rural Arizona highway near Hoover Dam looking for clues to the cause of a tour bus crash that killed seven Chinese tourists.
The six investigative team members would be measuring and photographing the site, evaluating the condition of the highway, and looking for skid marks and other clues, National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Peter Knudson said.
"These markings can be very important in telling the story of what happened," Knudson said.
The bus crashed Friday on a straight stretch of U.S. 93, about 70 miles southeast of Las Vegas.
The tourists had left Las Vegas early Friday on a trip to the Grand Canyon, and were returning when the bus veered right and then left across the median, rolling at least once before resting across the southbound lanes of the highway.
Along with the seven people killed, 10 others were injured.
After inspecting the crash site, the investigators planned to head south to Kingman to evaluate the bus. That will include checking whether the wheels and brakes were in good working order and whether any mechanical malfunctions may have caused the accident, Knudson said.
He said the investigators also plan to interview the 48-year-old bus driver, who was in fair condition at a Las Vegas hospital, and the surviving passengers.
"The more people we talk with, the more information we'll be able to get," he said.
The investigation will take 12 to 18 months to complete, with the bulk of the work being conducted at the NTSB's headquarters in Washington, Knudson said.
Representatives of the Arizona Department of Public Safety said they likely will have some preliminary results this week.
"Was it mechanical failure? Was it driver error?" DPS spokesman Lt. James Warriner said. "All that will come with looking at the vehicle and conducting interviews."
Warriner said of the weather at the time of the wreck that it was a "nice, clear day."
The DPS said the bus belonged to D.W. Tours of San Gabriel, Calif., which didn't respond to an e-mail from The Associated Press seeking comment.
Five people remained hospitalized Sunday at University Medical Center in Las Vegas. Two were in critical condition.
Hospital spokesman Rick Plummer said the victims' injuries ranged from spinal and head injuries to bone fractures. "It ran the whole gamut of injuries," he said.
Volunteers from the Chinese community in Las Vegas crowded the hospital's trauma unit Saturday, hoping to help with translation and taking food to the families of the injured.
Huang Xiaojian from the Chinese consulate in Los Angeles also was at the hospital but said she would not discuss details. "I am here to visit the patients," she said.
Two others — an 18-year-old woman and a 57-year-old man in fair condition Sunday — were at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas, according to hospital spokeswoman Ashlee Seymour. Another was still being treated at Kingman Regional Medical Center, hospital spokesman Ryan Kennedy said.
___
Associated Press Writer Kathleen Hennessey contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
By FELICIA FONSECA and AMANDA LEE MYERS
Associated Press Writers
DOLAN SPRINGS, Ariz. (AP) — Federal investigators on Sunday closely examined a stretch of rural Arizona highway near Hoover Dam looking for clues to the cause of a tour bus crash that killed seven Chinese tourists.
The six investigative team members would be measuring and photographing the site, evaluating the condition of the highway, and looking for skid marks and other clues, National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Peter Knudson said.
"These markings can be very important in telling the story of what happened," Knudson said.
The bus crashed Friday on a straight stretch of U.S. 93, about 70 miles southeast of Las Vegas.
The tourists had left Las Vegas early Friday on a trip to the Grand Canyon, and were returning when the bus veered right and then left across the median, rolling at least once before resting across the southbound lanes of the highway.
Along with the seven people killed, 10 others were injured.
After inspecting the crash site, the investigators planned to head south to Kingman to evaluate the bus. That will include checking whether the wheels and brakes were in good working order and whether any mechanical malfunctions may have caused the accident, Knudson said.
He said the investigators also plan to interview the 48-year-old bus driver, who was in fair condition at a Las Vegas hospital, and the surviving passengers.
"The more people we talk with, the more information we'll be able to get," he said.
The investigation will take 12 to 18 months to complete, with the bulk of the work being conducted at the NTSB's headquarters in Washington, Knudson said.
Representatives of the Arizona Department of Public Safety said they likely will have some preliminary results this week.
"Was it mechanical failure? Was it driver error?" DPS spokesman Lt. James Warriner said. "All that will come with looking at the vehicle and conducting interviews."
Warriner said of the weather at the time of the wreck that it was a "nice, clear day."
The DPS said the bus belonged to D.W. Tours of San Gabriel, Calif., which didn't respond to an e-mail from The Associated Press seeking comment.
Five people remained hospitalized Sunday at University Medical Center in Las Vegas. Two were in critical condition.
Hospital spokesman Rick Plummer said the victims' injuries ranged from spinal and head injuries to bone fractures. "It ran the whole gamut of injuries," he said.
Volunteers from the Chinese community in Las Vegas crowded the hospital's trauma unit Saturday, hoping to help with translation and taking food to the families of the injured.
Huang Xiaojian from the Chinese consulate in Los Angeles also was at the hospital but said she would not discuss details. "I am here to visit the patients," she said.
Two others — an 18-year-old woman and a 57-year-old man in fair condition Sunday — were at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas, according to hospital spokeswoman Ashlee Seymour. Another was still being treated at Kingman Regional Medical Center, hospital spokesman Ryan Kennedy said.
___
Associated Press Writer Kathleen Hennessey contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
