The Associated Press
VICTORIA, Texas — A pickup truck sideswiped a bus and sent it careering into a light pole on a southeast Texas highway, killing one passenger and leaving 21 others injured, authorities said Thursday.
The Valley Transit Greyhound bus was travelling from Houston to the border city of McAllen late Wednesday when it crashed just south of Victoria, Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Gerald Bryant told the Houston Chronicle.
The truck was pulling onto U.S. 77 from a side street when it ran into the 24-passenger bus, causing it to veer into the utility pole, Bryant said.
Juanita Lopez-Perez, 53, of Matamoros, Mexico, was killed and 21 others on board were taken to hospitals with injuries not considered life-threatening.
Eight people have been taken to DeTar Navarro Hospital in Victoria where they are in stable condition, said Judith Barefield, a hospital official.
Lopez-Perez, who was travelling alone, had been sitting at the front of the bus near the door when the accident occurred.
“It happened so fast,” passenger Larry Sanchez told The Victoria Advocate. “Once the impact hit, it was total pandemonium.”
Witnesses said the bus driver, Guadalupe Ruiz, 57, of Harlingen, didn’t have time to react when the truck pulled out in front of him.
The pickup truck was towing another pickup when the accident occurred, Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman Tom Vinger said. The truck driver was issued a ticket for failing to yield the right of way at an intersection.
The DPS has launched an investigation into the crash.