MelissaWV
08-06-2010, 07:26 AM
Background:
I first saw this story on the news yesterday, and the pictures are amazing. The pickup is just... crushed. I've never seen one so thoroughly and absolutely crushed. I was sure that the story would focus on how something like that could happen, and let us know how many school kids were injured, and the usual stuff. Instead, the news reporter went on about whether or not seatbelts were installed on the school bus. I actually said out loud "Seatbelts didn't do a whole hell of a lot for the guy in the pickup truck!"
This is not the story as I saw it broadcast, obviously, but it's what I could find online. The comments on this story at its various source sites mention seat belts quite a bit.
I have seen more mentions of the pickup truck's driver, by the way, now that it's confirmed he was a Senate candidate's son.
(KMOV) -- Two teenagers have been killed in a major accident on eastbound I-44. The crash happened around 10:15 a.m. on Thursday on I-44 near Gray Summit in Villa Ridge, Missouri.
The Missouri Highway Patrol says this was a chain-reaction crash. It all started when a Volvo tractor cab with no trailer slowed down in the right lane. Traffic was approaching a construction zone, which is likely why the truck driver stopped. A GMC pick-up truck then crashed into the tractor cab. The driver of a school bus tried to change lanes, but didn't see the stopped cars in front and hit the other two cars. A second school bus then smashed into the back of the first bus.
The Missouri Highway Patrol says that Jessica Brinker, 15, was killed in the crash while sitting in the back right of the first bus. They believe the impact of the second bus caused her death.
The driver of the GMC pick-up truck Daniel Schatz , 19, was also killed at the scene. He was a walk on football player for Mizzou as a freshman, but was not returning to the team this season. Schatz was the son of Republican state senate candidate Dave Schatz.
The buses were full of 8th-12th grade band students headed to Six Flags from St. James, Mo. The first bus was full of female students and the second bus was full of male students.
Officials tell News 4 there were 64 victims in this crash. 60 of those victims were students onboard the buses. All of the survivors of the crash have been released from local hospitals except for one; a female victim is still being treated. Hospital officials are not releasing any details on her condition.
The National Transportation Safety Board will be investigating the crash for the next seven to ten days. An NTSB spokesperson says that they will be looking into the cause of the crash as well as school bus and construction zone safety.
The NTSB is asking anyone who witnessed the crash to contact their local police. An update from the NTSB is expected later today.
Comment:
How many children will have to be injured or DIE before seat belts are mandatory on all school busses,or other busses used to transport children ? Seat belts are required in cars or SUV's. Why not school busses ? Also, the bus drivers are provided seat belt protection, why can't the children be protected?
Does anyone else think that school buses should be equipped with seat belts for our children? Would any of these injuries, or deaths been prevented? Who is responsible?
Another opportunity to ram home another regulation, rather than wonder why people cannot use common sense and maintain a proper distance, keeping alert. Incidentally, when they reported the story last night, it was said that the driver of the bus that ended up on top of the truck had been "looking in their mirror as they passed a stopped vehicle" and that's why they didn't see the stopped/slowed vehicles in front of them. Now that part has vanished from the story.
Yay media. http://www.kmov.com/news/local/2-buses-tractor-trailer-collide-on-I-44-100036604.html
I first saw this story on the news yesterday, and the pictures are amazing. The pickup is just... crushed. I've never seen one so thoroughly and absolutely crushed. I was sure that the story would focus on how something like that could happen, and let us know how many school kids were injured, and the usual stuff. Instead, the news reporter went on about whether or not seatbelts were installed on the school bus. I actually said out loud "Seatbelts didn't do a whole hell of a lot for the guy in the pickup truck!"
This is not the story as I saw it broadcast, obviously, but it's what I could find online. The comments on this story at its various source sites mention seat belts quite a bit.
I have seen more mentions of the pickup truck's driver, by the way, now that it's confirmed he was a Senate candidate's son.
(KMOV) -- Two teenagers have been killed in a major accident on eastbound I-44. The crash happened around 10:15 a.m. on Thursday on I-44 near Gray Summit in Villa Ridge, Missouri.
The Missouri Highway Patrol says this was a chain-reaction crash. It all started when a Volvo tractor cab with no trailer slowed down in the right lane. Traffic was approaching a construction zone, which is likely why the truck driver stopped. A GMC pick-up truck then crashed into the tractor cab. The driver of a school bus tried to change lanes, but didn't see the stopped cars in front and hit the other two cars. A second school bus then smashed into the back of the first bus.
The Missouri Highway Patrol says that Jessica Brinker, 15, was killed in the crash while sitting in the back right of the first bus. They believe the impact of the second bus caused her death.
The driver of the GMC pick-up truck Daniel Schatz , 19, was also killed at the scene. He was a walk on football player for Mizzou as a freshman, but was not returning to the team this season. Schatz was the son of Republican state senate candidate Dave Schatz.
The buses were full of 8th-12th grade band students headed to Six Flags from St. James, Mo. The first bus was full of female students and the second bus was full of male students.
Officials tell News 4 there were 64 victims in this crash. 60 of those victims were students onboard the buses. All of the survivors of the crash have been released from local hospitals except for one; a female victim is still being treated. Hospital officials are not releasing any details on her condition.
The National Transportation Safety Board will be investigating the crash for the next seven to ten days. An NTSB spokesperson says that they will be looking into the cause of the crash as well as school bus and construction zone safety.
The NTSB is asking anyone who witnessed the crash to contact their local police. An update from the NTSB is expected later today.
Comment:
How many children will have to be injured or DIE before seat belts are mandatory on all school busses,or other busses used to transport children ? Seat belts are required in cars or SUV's. Why not school busses ? Also, the bus drivers are provided seat belt protection, why can't the children be protected?
Does anyone else think that school buses should be equipped with seat belts for our children? Would any of these injuries, or deaths been prevented? Who is responsible?
Another opportunity to ram home another regulation, rather than wonder why people cannot use common sense and maintain a proper distance, keeping alert. Incidentally, when they reported the story last night, it was said that the driver of the bus that ended up on top of the truck had been "looking in their mirror as they passed a stopped vehicle" and that's why they didn't see the stopped/slowed vehicles in front of them. Now that part has vanished from the story.
Yay media. http://www.kmov.com/news/local/2-buses-tractor-trailer-collide-on-I-44-100036604.html