Third tour bus crash in less than three weeks
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WHITNEY POINT, N.Y. -- It's happened three times in less than three weeks in Upstate New York. A tour bus crash has resulted in multiple injuries.
Wednesday night, more than a dozen people were injured after a bus crashed on Interstate 81 in Whitney Point. Thirty people were on board the bus, which was traveling from Niagara Falls to New Jersey.
Route 81 South is back open in Whitney Point after the crash sent 19 people to local hospitals for mostly minor injuries.
State Police tell us the driver of the bus was going too fast for the rainy conditions on the highway.
Twenty-eight of the 30 people on the bus were tourists from Poland, along with an American tour guide and driver.
The person with more serious injuries was a female passenger who was trapped under the bus for nearly an hour. She's being treated at a local hospital. State Police said her injuries are not believed to be severe.
The bus was operating under Amerpol Tours out of Pennsylvania.
This is the third tour bus crash in Upstate New York in less than three weeks. A little less than two weeks ago, one person was killed and 30 were injured in a crash involving a bus on the Thruway in Seneca County. It happened between exits 42 and 41 eastbound in the Town of Junius. State Police said a tractor-trailer hit the bus from behind as it was re-entering the road from the shoulder causing an explosion. The tractor-trailer driver, Timothy Hume of Michigan, was killed.
Just a few days before that, a tour bus crash in Steuben County led to the death of two people and injured dozens more. That accident happened on Interstate 390 North in Avoca. Investigators said 37 people were aboard the bus headed from Washington, D.C. to Niagara Falls. The bus rolled over and went into the woods between exits 1 and 2. Investigators believe a blown tire may have been a factor.
Meanwhile, an emergency shelter has been set up in Castle Creek following the crash. The Red Cross is operating a shelter at the Chenango Fire Company Station #2. Officials from the Red Cross say there are more than 14 people at the shelter and they expect more to come as they get discharged from the hospital. They have set up cots and are providing the crash victims with water, food and blankets. Walmart has donated sweat suits to the victims so they can keep warm.
Officials say they have a counselor on hand to speak with the victims.
Marilyn Weiner of the Red Cross Disaster Team said, "The people are doing really well. They are beginning to calm down. It was a stressful situation for them, but they are doing fine."
Red Cross officials said two tour buses are en route to pick up the victims and take them to their original destination in New Jersey.