2006 Huntsville bus crash

Huntsville bus crash
Details
Date November 20, 2006
Location Huntsville, Alabama
Country United States
Bus route or line School bus
Bus operator Laidlaw Transit
Bus owner Laidlaw Transit
Type of incident Fall from bridge
Statistics
Bus School bus
Passengers 40
Deaths 4
Injuries 34

The Huntsville bus crash involved a school bus carrying 40 students from Lee High School to the Huntsville Center for Technology and occurred on November 20, 2006, on an elevated portion of Interstate 565 in Huntsville, Alabama. Police stated that the bus went over the side of the road after a car driven by another Lee High student tried to swerve around the bus, causing the bus driver to swerve going over the cliff. Four students were killed and 23 were injured after the bus plunged almost 40 feet (12 m). The driver was ejected from the bus before it went over the side of the bridge.[1] The crash was extensively covered by CNN and USA Today.[2][3]

The crash reignited debate over the installation of seat belts in buses, and whether Alabama should follow the lead of states such as Florida in legislating compulsory lap belts.[4] Following the crash Alabama Governor Bob Riley ordered a report be made into the issue. A study group consisting of education and transport officials interviewed 17 expert witnesses, and in early 2007 released recommendations that a pilot program be run with lap and shoulder belts being installed in a limited number of new buses from 2008.[5]

A similar accident occurred on November 21, 2016, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where a school bus driver lost control of a bus, causing it to roll over on its side and crash into a tree, killing six students and injuring 23.

References

  1. ↑ "Bus Accident Update: Fourth Student Dies". Retrieved 2006-12-21.
  2. ↑ "At least 3 students killed in school bus crash". CNN. Retrieved November 2, 2016.
  3. ↑ "3 students killed in school bus crash in Alabama". USA Today. Retrieved November 2, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Story of Strength: Meet Maddie Jamieson". WHNT-TV. September 1, 2012. Retrieved November 2, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Recommendations from the Governor's Study Group on School Bus Seat Belts" (PDF).

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