A bus travelling on Interstate 405 in Olympia, Washington, hit an SUV and killed two people. The driver of the bus failed to stop at a red light and caused the fatal car accident. The accident occurred when the driver of an SUV began to accelerate on 128th Street on a green light, reaching a speed of 23 miles per hour, just prior to being hit by the bus.
The bus was exiting the transit ramp that leads to NE 128th Street. The driver slowed to approximately 60 mph to exit the highway and struck the SUV when travelling at about 45 mph.
There were 25 passengers on the bus and they implored the driver to slow down and stop however the driver did not heed or respond to their requests. It is reported that he traveled three quarters of a mile after the car accident before the passengers on the bus were able to stop the bus.
The driver of the SUV suffered a concussion and a fractured rib. His passengers were killed during the accident. Some of the passengers of the bus sustained minor injuries.
The driver of the bus told the police that the brakes failed but when testing took place, no failure was evident.
While it has been determined that the driver of the bus was in the wrong, he was cooperative after the accident and a drug and alcohol test came back as negative.
The bus driver is on unpaid administrative leave since the accident happened over a year ago. He may be charged with two counts of vehicular homicide, one count of vehicular assault and one count of hit and run with death.
The driver of the car has the right to compensation and payment for any medical fees and loss of income that came about because of the accident.
Source: KOMO News, “WSP: Bus driver at fault in crash that killed 2 in Kirkland” No author given, May. 14, 2014
