New York Bus Crashes, Injuring More than 20 Passengers

A New York bus carrying passengers bound for a casino on the Jersey Shore crashed yesterday morning, rolling through two vehicles before coming to a final, jarring halt at a retaining wall. Of the 50 individuals riding to the Tropicana Casino and Resort, nearly half were injured.

The driver, Chin Cheung Pang, was hurled through the bus’s front windshield during the impact. Based on the severity of his injuries, investigators initially believed that he had been run over by the bus. They later determined that his injuries were all suffered when he went through the glass.

He withstood severe injury to his arms and shoulder during the bus accident and, even after undergoing surgery, remains in critical condition.

Police are expected to attempt to recreate the accident sometime next week, but it is believed that Pang, traveling at a high speed, did not see that traffic had stopped. When he slammed on the brakes, the bus skidded forward, hitting two of the vehicles in its path and smashing into the retaining wall.

Investigators will also be looking at the bus’s data recorder, much like a plane’s black box, for more clues. Of the 20-some passengers sent to the hospital with injuries, a handful remains in intensive care.

It is almost certain that many more of the passengers involved in the crash will suffer some effects, such as whiplash. While no personal injury lawsuits have been filed yet, such a development seems likely given the circumstances.

Related Resource

• Police say bus driver skidded before accident that injured 24 in Atlantic City (Press of Atlantic City)