Charter Bus Crashes Killing Three in Pala Mesa, California
PALA MESA, CA- Sanluisobispo.com writes that three people died, and another eighteen people suffered injuries when a bus rolled over. Rainfall caused the roads to be slick at the time of the crash. Reports indicate that the bus was not equipped with seatbelts and that several of the occupants were thrown from the vehicle as it rolled down an embankment.*
One of the three people killed had become trapped beneath the massive vehicle after it overturned. Responders transported the injured victims to three local hospitals. One of the wounded sustained critical injuries, and two others are in serious condition. The driver was injured in the crash as well. According to the police, the man swerved and then lost control of the bus. It is not clear why he swerved. The bus was traveling from Los Angeles to San Ysidro, which is a town near the border of Mexico. Reports did not state the name of the company that owned the bus. When responders arrived on the scene, they were concerned that the vehicle might fall further down the embankment, and they had to work to secure it before they were able to pull the victims up using ropes. The bus had to be pulled up in order to recover the body of the person who had become trapped beneath the vehicle.
Traffic on Interstate 15 was backed for several miles while crews worked to investigate and clear the scene. Often after bus crashes, people wonder why these vehicles are not equipped with seatbelts. In many cases, the answer is that adding seatbelts to buses would be expensive. It could cost $12,000 or more to add seatbelts to a bus.
Accident News is a safety and education initiative from Montlick & Associates, designed to help people better understand and thereby avoid common accident causes. To learn more about our injury prevention programs, including iridesafe.com - click here. We hope you are never in an accident, but if you or family member are injured, call Montlick & Associates 24/7 for your free consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333) or use our live chat at Montlick.com.
Sources:
https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/nation-world/national/article240551286.html
https://www.lctmag.com/article/731050/handling-the-seat-belt-debacle-and-other-motorcoach-matters