Northern California tour bus accident kills 1, injures dozens
One person was killed and 30 others were injured, some critically, in a tour bus accident in northern California on Sunday.
The tour bus was reportedly on its way from Los Angeles to Pasco, Washington, when it coasted off of the freeway and overturned around 7:30 a.m. about 100 miles south of the Oregon border.
It was also reported that the same bus had already been involved in another accident about 50 miles earlier on the same trip. During that accident, the bus reportedly ran into a Denny’s restaurant, but no one was injured.
Apparently, police decided to let the bus continue on its trip even though investigators have since said that evidence suggests that driver fatigue may have contributed to both accidents. The driver of the bus was a 67-year-old Los Angeles man.
The operator of the tour bus, Yellow Arrow LLC is based in Othello, Washington.
According to initial reports, the person killed in the accident was a 33-year-old California man. Three of the passengers were reported to be in critical condition and another three were reported to be in serious condition. Most of the passengers suffered minor injuries and have been released from the hospital.
Undoubtedly, a lengthy investigation will follow in effort to determine what went wrong and who might be to blame. Not only could the bus driver and bus company be held responsible for the fatal wreck, the law enforcement members who decided to let the driver proceed after the initial accident could also be in hot water.
As we discussed in a past post on our blog, if an investigation reveals that negligence played a role in the fatal accident, personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits could likely result on behalf of the passengers who were injured or killed.
Source: Fox News, “California tour bus crash kills at least 1, injures dozens,” Nov. 24, 2014