By, Tony Briscoe
The Detroit News
Detroit — Sixteen people were injured, two critically, after a Detroit Department of Transportation bus on Monday collided with an SUV hauling a trailer filled with landscaping equipment.
The crashed happened about 1 p.m. at the intersection of Van Dyke Road and Gratiot Avenue.
Detroit Police Officer James Hillock said that the bus driver allegedly ran a red light going northbound on Van Dyke and hit an SUV, which was traveling in an unknown direction on Gratiot.
Eastpointe resident Richard Chambers, one of 27 passengers who was riding the DDOT bus, said the bus was driving “full speed” when it crashed into the truck.
“The bus driver deliberately ran the stop light,” said Chambers, 33, who said he injured his back in the collision.
Chambers said he saw at least two bus passengers who were bleeding and the man driving the truck was so shaken up that he was crying.
“He suffered a lot. He was crying and holding his legs and arms,” said Chambers.
EMS personnel transported the injured to St. Johns, Henry Ford and Detroit Receiving hospitals.
The crash forced the closure of Van Dyke in both directions at the intersection, which was littered with broken glass, plastic and other debris.
Van Dyke later opened at 5:30 p.m.
The driver of the SUV was taken to a local hospital where he is listed in temporary serious condition.
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