Greyhound bus crash injures 35 in SW Ohio

Associated Press

CINCINNATI

A Greyhound bus drove off an interstate highway in southwest Ohio early Saturday, struck a tree and a fence and flipped on its side before sliding to a stop in a cornfield, injuring at least 35 people.

None of the injuries was considered life-threatening, though several people were trapped and had to be extricated by firefighters and paramedics, the Ohio Highway Patrol said.

Patrol Sgt. Pete Combs said an investigation was underway, and he could not comment on a possible cause for the crash, which happened around 4 a.m. on Interstate 75 in Liberty Township, about 25 miles north of Cincinnati.

But passenger Christopher Link, of Michigan, said that he saw the driver slumped over. Link said he heard a woman scream at the driver “Wake up! Wake up!” but that he thinks the man might have had a medical problem.

Link said the bus rolled over at least twice after hitting the tree.

Jeff Galloway, director of the Butler County Emergency Management Agency, said 35 people were taken to hospitals, six by helicopters and 29 by ambulance. The injuries ranged from minor to severe, officials said.

The bus, which left Cincinnati bound for Detroit, was carrying 51 passengers and the driver. Those passengers who were not injured and those who were treated and released from hospitals were transported back to Cincinnati, but none was at the bus station later Saturday morning.

At least nine people remained in hospitals Saturday night.

Eleven of 13 people taken to Atrium Medical Center in Middletown and all but one of the 14 taken to West Chester Hospital had been released as of Saturday evening, according to officials at both hospitals. The conditions of those who remained hospitalized were not released.

A telephone hotline was set up for friends and family members seeking information about the passengers on the bus. The phone number is 800-972-4583.