On Monday before Thanksgiving, tragedy struck Chattanooga, TN when a bus driver crashed a bus into a tree. Five children died at the scene. A sixth child passed away at the hospital. Five other children remain at the hospital. Toxicology exams did not show any alcohol or drugs in the driver’s system. However, police report that the driver was speeding in excess of 30 mph over the speed limit on a curvy road. The local prosecutor has charged the driver with six counts of vehicular homicide.
The driver was involved in another automobile accident two months earlier. In 2014, his license was suspended for driving without insurance. The school board has refused to confirm whether complaints were made concerning the driver prior to the collision. The company that operates the school buses for the community is Durham. Durham had 346 crashes over the last two years before this incident. Those collisions resulted in 3 deaths and 142 injuries.
Shortly after the collision occurred, hundreds of people in the community lined up to donate blood. Those with blood type O negative were fast-tracked through the long lines. In addition, grief counselors made themselves available for family members, students, and teachers.
If you or a loved one was injured on a bus, contact the O’Hara Law Firm to learn about your right to compensation. Patrick O’Hara vast experience representing people injured in collisions involving commercial trucks, 18-wheelers, automobiles, motorcycles and pedestrians with injuries ranging from death to soft tissue damage.