Several People Wounded in a Tour Bus Crash
Dozens of people have been injured on Thursday due to two separate crashes of two tour buses on the 15 Freeway in Corona. According to Officer Travis Monks, in one of the crashes, which was on the northbound side of the freeway between Magnolia and Ontario Avenues in the Corona area, around 20 people were transported to local hospitals.
The Corona Fire Department had requests for all lanes to be closed so that the emergency crews could respond. One of the Fire Department officials called the incident as “multi-casualty.”
According to the on scene officer, the bus was on it’s way to Westminster, Orange County, they were returning from the Pala Casino. The Fire Chief reported that thirty-five adults were on the bus that day and twenty-two of them were taken to the hospital. Several even went to the local trauma centers.
Interviews shows that the driver of the bus was going 65 miles per hour at the time of the crash which was too fast for the wet road conditions that day.
CHP stated that the bus was operated by the tour company of Sina Coach. That crash occured within minutes of the second incident. The second accident left at least one person dead and several others hurt.
The CHP said that the collision that occurred on the southbound side of State Road 76, also involved a tour bus. A SigAlert was issued around 2:59 that evening for that particular crash.
That Charter bus was driven by the 56 year old man from Compton. He was on route to the Valley View Casino which was after they left the Panorama City area. The driver indicated that his bus company was from the city of Bell.
The driver said that he was traveling in the no. 4 lane at 55 miles per hour when he started to lose control of the bus on the roadway. The driver had tried to correct the out of control bus but was unsuccessful. The bus continued on the right shoulder then overturned on it’s left side. Slick roads, due to rain might have prevented the bus driver from regaining control of the bus.__
At least one person was kill, she was later identified as a 64 year old woman from Glendale. The woman was partially ejected and became trapped underneath the bus. The twenty-two injured passengers were taken to the Palomar Hospital, Fallbrook Hospital, and the Tri City Medical Center.
The accidents occurred right when the snow and rain hit Southern California. The National Weather Service had warned that road conditions might be dangerous.
No other vehicles were involved in either collision, alcohol nor drugs seem to be a factor in the accident. The crash is still under investigation.
Daniel A. Gibalevich
DAG Law Firm
