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The lone occupant of the SUV died after the vehicle became
engulfed in flames following the crash just after 5 a.m. in the
Hacienda Heights area, about 20 miles (32 km) east of downtown
LA, the California Highway Patrol said in a news release.
CHP Officer Zachary Salazar said 32 people were taken to
hospitals, including the two in critical condition. He said the
remaining people transported had injuries ranging from moderate
to minor.
A passenger on the bus, Joe Runnel, told KTLA-TV that people
were “begging for mercy” in the moments after the crash that
closed two lanes of State Route 60 for several hours.
“I was thrown from the back seat of the bus to the floor about
three or four seats down,” Runnel said. “Glass was on me … there
was a lot of hollering.”
The preliminary investigation suggests that the SUV became
disabled for unknown reasons in a lane and the tour bus then
collided with the rear of the SUV, the CHP said. After the
impact, the bus veered to the right across all lanes and
collided with the guardrail along the shoulder, the news release
said.
There was significant damage to the front of the bus, including
a shattered windshield. The LA County Fire Department said the
fire did not spread to the bus.
Salazar said 63 people were aboard the bus, including the
driver. He said 31 people were able to leave the scene in a
separate bus.
The bus was headed from the Indio area of the desert near Palm
Springs to the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles, officials
said. Police originally said the bus was coming from Morongo.
The highway was fully reopened by late morning.
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