Early Saturday morning, a devastating Mississippi bus crash claimed the lives of seven individuals and left dozens injured.
The bus traveling from Atlanta to Dallas veered off the road and overturned on Interstate 20 in Warren County. The Mississippi Highway Patrol reported that the tragic incident occurred around 12:40 a.m. Authorities are still investigating the matter. However, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) indicated that the crash could’ve been sparked by a tire failure while the bus was driving on the interstate.
According to reports, the 2018 Volvo commercial bus carried 41 passengers, including two drivers. Unfortunately, following the accident, six individuals were pronounced dead at the scene, including two siblings — a 6-year-old boy and his 16-year-old sister. At the same time, one other person passed away from injuries at a nearby hospital. The Mississippi Highway Patrol also shared that all 36 of the remaining passengers were immediately transported to local hospitals with a wide range of injuries.
The U.S. Department of Transportation revealed that Regiomontanos Autobuses, the company that owns the bus, has been involved in several incidents within the past two years, including one fatal crash, two injury collisions, and one crash requiring a tow truck. Despite these isolated accidents, the company has “conditional” safety ratings, which means they are under review for compliance with the federal safety regulations.
“A compliance review may be conducted to investigate potential violations of safety regulations or complaints about motor carriers, among other reasons,” the department’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said.
As investigators are working to piece together the details that led to the crash, families of the victims are left processing their losses.
