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I-37 Bus Crash Kills 2, Injures Dozen

By Beth Janicek

Tuesday morning an Americano USA bus bound for the border spun 180 degrees before sliding into a ditch end-first and falling over onto its passenger side in the median of Interstate 37 in Atascosa County, killing two people and injuring dozens of others.

The bus driver reported hearing a popping sound immediately before losing control of the bus. After an initial investigation, DPS officials believe that faulty equipment may have contributed to the crash and debris indicated that the vehicle's drive shaft fell off. The bus underwent a full maintenance check on Monday before leaving San Antonio headed for Matamoros, Mexico, with two scheduled stops in the Rio Grande Valley.

FirstGroup spokesman Timothy Stokes said,

'Americanos USA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Greyhound Bus, which is a division of FirstGroup America.'

Stokes said that the driver, whose identity wasn't disclosed, has been with the bus line since May 2009 and has a clean driving record.

According to statistics from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Americanos USA has had a strong safety record, with below average bus inspection and driver infractions. Federal records show that Americanos buses have been involved in 10 crashes during the last 30 months, including one fatality and four that involved injuries.

It has been reported that the NTSB isn't planning to investigate because its initial assessment turned up no new potential safety issues involving the company or crash. However, I think that further investigation into this massive equipment failure is necessary. Common carriers like this bus company need to be held to higher standard of care when they have so many lives relying on their safety.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Beth Janicek

Full post as published by San Antonio Personal Injury Lawyer on March 17, 2010 (boomark / email).