Numerous Tour bus passengers were seriously injured and at at least six were killed when a tour bus driver rear-ended a pick-up truck, lost control, rolled over in a fatal crash on an Arizona interstate Highway today (Friday). The bus wreck occurred at 5:27 a.m. on Interstate 10 south of Phoenix at milepost 173.
The tour bus is owned by Los Angeles, California-based Tierra Santa Tour Company. The Tierra Santa Tour bus was taking 22 passengers from Mexico to Los Angeles, California.
The cause of the bus crash is still under investigation. The tour bus departed from central Mexico near Durango headed for Los Angeles, CA. Investigators are noting that the tour group bus driver planned to switch with a relief driver once they reached Phoenix, about 30 miles north of the crash. The bus driver lost control when it rear-ended a pick-up truck and lost control with the bus rolling over at least once. This is the second serious tour bus accident in Arizona in the last 18 months, with the former crash killing seven Chinese tourists.
Tierra Santa Tour Bus Company of Van Nuys, California has a history of safety violations, no federal record of insurance and may not have been able to legally carry passengers in Arizona. The Transportation-safety records and federal regulators confirm they were not licensed to carry passengers across state lines. Incredibly, the buses were stopped and cited three times last year by state and federal transportation inspectors in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. The state and federal inspectors' reports show that one of the buses was pulled off the road and declared "out of service" when it was cited in Texas in August. In that stop, inspectors cited the bus for lack of insurance and an interstate license, defective lights, defective emergency exits, inoperable lamps and other maintenance issue.
- Pheonix Arizona Tour Bus Crash Kills 6 On I-10 - devastating traffic accident involving a tour bus occurred this morning in Phoenix Arizona on Interstate 10, one mile east of the Gila River ...
- Six dead in tour bus crash on I-10 KTAR.com
Six People Killed In Tour Bus Accident WDEF News 12
6 people killed in bus crash south of Phoenix The Associated Press
Updates:
The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administation (FMCSA)shut down the operations of California-based Teirra Santa Inc. According to a federal agency, the bus company was operating illegally and was uninsured. According to FMCSA's complaint, the owner of the bus company, Cayetano Martinex of Los Angeles, had been shut down previously and had attempted to to gain operating authority under another name.
Our tour bus attorneys are investigating this accident. Our injury lawyers have extensive experience in mass tort crashes such as this and understand how to protect your legal rights. If you are a victim or the family member of a victim from this tragic accident, contact our team of accident attorneys 24x7 by calling toll free 866.936.7447.
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