Waco Personal Injury Lawyer - Mass Transit (Airline, Cruise Ship, Train, Bus)

Victoria Tour Bus Crash Kills One, Critically Injures Many Passengers

Craig Cherry — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 08:52:44 GMT

At approximately 4:10 am this morning, a motor coach tour bus operated by Capricorn Bus Lines, Inc overturned and flipped on its side while traveling on U.S. Highway 59 near Victoria, Texas. At the time of the accident, it is believed approximately 46 people were on the bus traveling to Houston, Texas from Monterrey, Mexico.

One bus passenger died at the accident scene from injuries. At least twenty-five people were taken to area hospitals, nine of them were in critical condition. At least two bus passengers were airlifted to hospitals in San Antonio given the severity of their injuries. Many of the injuries to bus passengers have included broken backs and additional orthopedic injuries.

Police investigators are still trying to determine why the bus overturned onto its side, however investigators believe the driver may have gone off the road and then overcorrected before the bus overturned. It is unclear at this time whether or not the tour bus was equipped with passenger seat belts.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Mass Transit Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cherry

Kentucky Bus Crash Victim Sues School Bus Manufacturer

Craig Cherry — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 05:54:56 GMT

The family of 12-year old Cody Shively sued the manufacturers of a school bus he was riding in back in January of this year when it was involved in a crash. Cody suffered severe brain and eye injuries as a result of not being properly restrained during the crash event.

A video camera inside the bus captured Cody and other school children being tossed around the bus during the crash, amidst flying metal beams, shards of glass, and other debris.

The family has sued Navistar International Corporation, Navistar International Transportation Corporation, International Truck and Engine Corporation and IC Corporation alleging the school bus was unsafe because it did not provide seat betls for passengers and lacked sufficient structural integrity.

School bus manufacturers have historically relied upon a theory known as "passive restraint" and "compartmentalization" as attempts to protect school bus passengers. Reliance upon compartmentalization alone is absurd, particularly in a tipover or rollover crash. If a child is not restrained to his seat during a tipover/rollover crash event, the force of gravity is necessarily going to throw the bus passengers out of their seats, thereby creating the potential for a partial or full ejection from the bus. No parent would put a child in a car without a seat belt and no parent should not be forced to put their child in a school bus without seat belts.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Airlines, Cruises, Buses, and Other Mass Transit Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cherry

School Bus Seat Belt Legislation Becomes Law In Texas

Craig Cherry — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 06:37:07 GMT

On Friday, Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed into law legislation passed by Congress that requires all Texas school buses purchased on or after September 1, 2010 to be equipped with three-point lap and shoulder seat belts for passengers.

Additionally, all charter (motorcoach) buses used by Texas schools to transport school children on or after September 1, 2014 must also be equipped with three-point lap and shoulder belts for passengers.

The new law is a result of the tragic school bus accident that occurred on March 29, 2006, near Devers, Texas, and took the life of two West Brook High School students and critically injured several others.

The law will be contingent on lawmakers finding the money to cover the school districts' expenses for the seat belts. Sen. Eddie Lucio, a sponsor of the bill that Gov. Perry signed into law, does not believe finding the money will be an issue considering the vast resources in Texas.

Some school districts, including Beaumont and Galveston, have already begun installing three-point lap and shoulder belts on new school buses. Other school districts in Texas are also considering taking action before 2010.

New York, New Jersey, Louisiana, California and Florida have also all passed legislation requiring seat belts on school buses.

The passing of this law means our school children will be safer when traveling to/from school and school related events. Too many of our children have been virtually unprotected when involved in an accident where the school bus tipped or rolled over. In order to adequately protect bus occupants from sustaining serious injury or death in tip over and rollover crashes, you must keep them restrained to their seats. This law will implement a common sense approach motor vehicle safety that has been available in passenger cars for decades.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cherry

Texas House Set To Vote On School Bus Seatbelt Bill

Craig Cherry — Tue, 01 May 2007 20:08:26 GMT

The Texas House of Representatives is set to vote on a piece of critical legislation that would require Texas schools to purchase buses with three-point lap-shoulder belts for passengers after 2010. Also, the legislation would require Texas schools to only use chartered motorcoach buses with three-point lap-shoulder belts after 2014.

The legislation is a result of the tragic school bus accident that occurred last March 29, 2006, near Devers, Texas, and took the life of two West Brook High School students and critically injured several others.

Finally, after years of flying under the government's "radar" , motorcoach and school bus manufacturers are being pushed in the right direction to implement and provide the most basic safety devices that car occupants have been provided for decades. This legislation is long overdue and everyone should contact their state representative and senator and tell them to vote in favor of this legislation. The legislation is House Bill 323 and is being referred to as "Ashley and Alicia's Bill" in memory of the two girls that were killed last year. This legislation will protect our children as they travel to/from school and school events.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cherry

Construction Workers Lift Bus to Save Girl

Christina Cole — Sun, 11 Mar 2007 18:09:23 GMT

After a collision involving a car and bus on Tuesday, construction workers came to the rescue of a five-year-old-girl who was pinned under the bus, managing to free her.

A car ran a red light and smashed into a Primrose School bus causing it to roll over, said Police. Nine people were hurt in the crash, including seven children ages five and six and two adults.

Nearby construction workers used their collective strength to lift the bus off a five-year-old girl, saving her life.

David Eastep was working when he said he saw his fellow construction workers run off towards the site of the accident.
"So me and my buddy right here took off running to see what had happened and to see if anyone was hurt," he said. "That was when we saw the little girl out the back window and the bus was on top of her."
Another worker, said a group of about five to seven men automatically ran to the bus and teamed up to lift it off the girl.
"They picked up the van off that little girl," he said. "It was just amazing to me what people can do just in a split second."

It is a joyous miracle that she lived through the accident and they were able to save her. The children were taken to Cook Children's Medical Center. Most of the children were treated and released, one five-year-old remains in the ICU in stable condition.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole

Atlanta Bus Accident Kills 6, Injures 29

Craig Cherry — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 06:30:41 GMT

A motorcoach charter bus carrying a college baseball team from Ohio drove off an overpass in Atlanta, Georgia yesterday killing six and injuring twenty-nine others. Many of the passengers are believed to have been fully or partially ejected from the bus.

Of the six bus passengers killed, four were students from Bluffton University. The bus driver and his wife were also killed. Twenty-eight players were injured, as well as, their coach. Of the players that were injured, six were listed in critical condition.

The team from Bluffton University was on its way for its annual spring trip to Florida when the crash occurred just before dawn. While it was still dark outside at the time of the crash, the weather was clear.

A team from the National Transportation Safety Board was called out to the scene to investigate the bus crash. A spokesperson for the NTSB said they expect to release their findings into the cause of the crash within the year.

It is believed none of the players or coaches were wearing seat belts because motorcoach buses typically do not have passenger seat belts since the federal government currently does not require them for passengers.

This is yet another unfortunate example of why the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration needs to require motorcoach bus manufacturers to provide seat belts for passengers. I was co-lead counsel in what is believed to be the first jury trial to go to verdict against a motorcoach bus manufacturer. In that case, several motorcoach bus passengers were ejected and killed after the bus rolled over onto its side during a collision. We believed that had the bus had seat belts, none of the passengers would have been injured, much less killed. In October 2005, a McLennan County, Texas jury agreed with us an awarded our clients $17.5 million dollars after finding the motorcoach bus at issue defective for not providing passengers seat belts or using laminated safety glass in the side windows of the bus.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cherry

NTSB: Government Partly To Blame For Deaths Of Bus Passengers

Craig Cherry — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 21:43:21 GMT

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) ruled that a lack of oversight by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was partly to blame for the deaths of 23 bus passengers that occurred on September 23, 2005 near Dallas, Texas.

The bus, operated by Global Limo Inc., was carrying passengers who were fleeing the Texas Gulf Coast due to approaching Hurricane Rita. A rear wheel of the bus caught fire on a freeway near Dallas and within minutes the vehicle was engulfed in flames and smoke.

While the NTSB ruled that lack of oil in a wheel assembly probably caused the fire, the board said the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was responsible as well because it has done a poor job making sure bus companies are safe. Federal regulators shut down Global Limo, Inc. weeks after the accident and its owner, James Maples, was later convicted of maintenance and inspection charges.

Victims and relatives of victims reached an $11 million settlement in May with Global Limo and BusBank, the travel broker that hired it.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cherry