Three Canadians Killed In Bus Crash

Three Montrealers are among the five people killed in a horrific Greyhound bus crash in New York.

Tambadou Souleymane, 16, an unidentified 34-year-old man and an unidentified 69-year-old woman perished. The other two victims are from New York state – 81-year-old Antonide Dorcethe and the 52-year-old driver of the bus, Ronald Burgess.

There were 48 others injured, many of them believed to be Canadian.

Police think front-end tire failure may have contributed to the crash, which occurred on the Montreal-bound bus from New York City.

It was travelling along Interstate 87, near Westport, N.Y., Monday evening when it burst through a guardrail, flipped several times, and landed upside down in a ditch.

“At this time we are listing steering tire failure as a possible contributing factor to this accident,” said Maj. Richard Smith Jr. of New York State Police.

“At least one of the tires was deflated at the scene (of the accident).”

A trucker has told police he saw a problem with one of the wheels just before the accident took place. But it’s still not clear if the tire deflation  happened before the mishap or afterwards.

“It looked like a battlefield,” described Ray Thatcher, director of Emergency Services for Essex County, New York, as rescue workers worked to remove passengers from the wrecked vehicle.

“Several passengers were thrown from the vehicle as it rolled. They were up to 75 feet or more from the bus. There were people everywhere.”

The crash occurred at about 6:45pm, and unidentified survivors called the experience “terrifying.”

“The bus sped off the road and flipped over. It was the most terrifying thing I have ever experienced,” said one man, whose right eye was swollen shut.

Another passenger said he “bounced from the floor to the roof non-stop” and his girlfriend was ejected through a window.

“In terms of commuter bus, I would say it’s certainly one of the worst that I’ve certainly responded to and in terms of loss of life it certainly was a tragic event,” Smith said.

The final body was removed from the wreckage at about 2:15am – most of the hurt passengers were taken to four nearby hospitals with injuries ranging from broken bones to cuts and bruises.

But as terrible as it was, experts believe it could have been even worse. They’re crediting the late driver with preventing even more fatalities.

“I think the bus driver maintained control of the bus for some distance through the median and decreased the speed of the bus before it rolled,” praises Don Jaquish of Essex County Emergency Services.  

Greyhound said the bus was inspected and found to be in perfect condition before it left New York City and can’t yet account for what changed en route.

The company has set up an information hotline for friends and families of passengers. Call 1-800-972-4583 for updates.