Investigators are trying to reconstruct a fatal accident that occurred on Interstate 44 in Missouri involving two school buses, a semi tractor-trailer, and a pickup truck. In a briefing several hours after the accident, Christopher Hart of the National Transportation Safety Board, stated that the NTSB would focus on the construction zone and human factors involved in the accident.
It is believed that the pickup truck rear-ended a bobtail tractor stopped in traffic near a construction zone on Interstate 44. That caused a multi-vehicle pileup as two school buses, carrying band members from St. James High School on an outing to Six Flags, and then hit the pickup. Two people were killed in the accident, and almost 50 were injured. Victims were sent to several local hospitals' emergency rooms for treatment.
Construction Zone and Human Factors Will Be Focus of NTSB's Investigation
The NTSB has announced that it will not focus on the probable cause of the semi-bus accident, but it will investigate the congestion near the construction zone as well as distracted driving that may have contributed to the pileup. Hart noted that school bus safety has been an on-going concern for the NTSB, even though school buses are the safest way for school children to travel to school.
Clearly, many road dangers aligned to create this tragedy: the dangers of construction zones, traffic congestion, large commercial vehicles, school buses loaded with children, and possible inattentive driving may all be contributing factors in the school bus and tractor-trailer wreck. The risk of catastrophic injury and death was realized for two wrongful death victims and several others seriously injured.
If you have been seriously injured in a trucking accident, or in an accident in a construction zone, you need to contact an experienced trucking accident attorney to discuss your options.
