California Injury Blog

A woman in her 30s was reportedly hit and killed by a charter bus when she was crossing the street Tuesday morning in the Westlake area of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Times reports. The article states that the woman, who has not yet been identified, entered a crosswalk at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and New Hampshire Avenue, when she was hit by the bus.

Witnesses describe the charter bus as a yellow bus that looks very much like a school bus. The driver of the bus was reportedly trying to turn on New Hampshire from Wilshire. No one else was injured as a result of the bus accident and police are still looking into what caused the fatal accident, the Times reports. Officials have not yet released the name of the bus driver or the bus company either. No one has been arrested or cited yet.

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Four children reportedly died and at least 14 others suffered severe to moderate injuries in a tragic school bus accident in southwestern Minnesota. According to an Associated Press article posted on the local Fox News’ Web site, the bus was initially hit by a van. Then the bus hit a pickup truck and tipped onto its side. While rescue squads and ambulances arrived, the first motorists on scene were asked to take children to the hospital, the Marshall Independent, a local newspaper reported.

The bus was carrying children from kindergarten through 12th grade. Among the victims transported to two different area hospitals, two were in critical condition and others were reportedly being treated for back and neck injuries, cuts, bumps and bruises. Two victims ages 11 and 14 had complex fractures, which required special treatment at a hospital farther away from the crash site, the report said.

This is no doubt a tough week for the people of Cottonwood, Minn. who must deal with the grief and shock of four young lives lost. Families of the severely injured will have it tough as their children gradually recover from the physical and mental trauma of a horrific bus accident that took the lives of people they knew or were friends with.

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A Massachusetts jury has awarded $10 million to a 58-year-old woman who suffered severe brain damage after she was hit by a public transit bus while waiting to get to work, the Boston Globe reports. After the bus crash, Louise Scialdone is reportedly not able to work and has serious problems related to her brain injury such as balance, memory, sensitivity to light and the mental capacity of a third grader.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority must now pay Scialdone about $12.8 million from the date her suit was filed, factoring in interest. Jurors announced their verdict after only four hours of deliberations, the article said.

The accident reportedly occurred Feb. 4, 2004 when Scialdone, who used a walker because of her arthritis, was waiting at a bus stop. The bus driver lost control of the vehicle, fishtailed onto the sidewalk and knocked the woman off her feet. Scialdone was then thrown 5 feet and her head slammed into a parked car, the article said. She lost consciousness and was in and out of the hospital for weeks after the accident.

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A 25-year-old woman, who reportedly was possibly talking on her cell phone and not wearing a seatbelt, was killed when a public bus carrying school students crashed into the sedan she was driving, also injuring six students on the bus, according to a news report in the Los Angeles Daily News.

The Santa Clarita Transit Bus was carrying 15 passengers including junior high and high school students, officials told the newspaper. The bus driver and one student had to be transported to a local hospital, according to another Associated Press news report. Four other children were reportedly treated at the scene for minor injuries. The children on the bus were students from West Ranch High School and Rancho Pico Jr. High School, the Daily News reported.

The woman driver, whose name has not yet been released, was driving a Toyota Camry.
According to California Highway Patrol officials, the bus was headed south on The Old Road and the Camry was traveling east on Constitution near the Santa Clarita marketplace when the bus crash occurred. The driver’s side of the Camry was completely smashed in and the front of the bus reportedly rested on a concrete median.

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A charter bus carrying at least 50 people from a Colorado ski resort skidded off a rain slicked road in South Utah and rolled over several times down an embankment killing nine people and injuring at least 23. According to an Associated Press news report, the Arrow Stage Lines bus was traveling southbound on State Route 163 when it plummeted 41 free down an embankment after failing to negotiate a curve.

Many of the travelers suffered critical injuries while nine were killed in the crash. According to reports, the roof of the bus split open and many of the occupants were thrown out of the vehicle. Several investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board are out on scene investigating the tragic, horrific crash. The driver reportedly escaped with minor injuries.

The Associated Press also reported information from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Web site, which shows that Arrow Stage has had seven bus crashes in the last two years, four of which involved injuries. This accident occurred 10 miles north of the area known as the Mexican Hat, in the Four Corners region where Utah meets Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico. Emergency crews from all four states responded. The nearest hospital was about 80 miles away.

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A Kentucky man, who suffered severe brain injuries when he was struck by a bus, will get about $ 7 million in an out-of-court settlement that was finalized this week. According to a UPI news report, Kevin Hable, himself a successful attorney, was forced to quit his job and his career because of brain damage and debilitating injuries.

Hable’s attorneys say they found out that the bus company, was negligent in hiring driver Terra Walter, a woman convicted of possessing cocaine and a crack pipe, according to an article in the Courier-Journal. She had also failed two drug treatment programs and had been ordered by a court to a third rehab program.

But the TARC bus company put her behind the wheel of a city bus and continued to keep her in spite of the fact that she tested positive for cocaine the next year. What was the result of that decision? It changed Hable’s life in an instant. According to the newspaper, the man was managing partner of law firm Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, making more than $400,000 a year, a 52-year-old outdoorsman who ran 5 miles a day and top aide to two Kentucky governors. Now he cannot even walk his dogs.

Continue reading "Prominent Lawyer Severely Injured In Bus Crash Settles For $7 Million" »

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A Los Angeles jury recently decided that the County Metropolitan Transportation Authority should pay $13.8 million to a 58-year-old man who was partially paralyzed in a crash with a parked big-rig, according to an Associated Press news report posted on the San Diego Union Tribune’s Web site.

Joseph L. Garcia was in a bus that was traveling west on Santa Monica Boulevard on June 25, 2005 when the bus hit the big-rig. All six passengers who were on board were hurt, but Garcia suffered the most serious injuries including permanent brain damage and paralysis on the left side of his body.

The jury deliberated a day before returning a verdict on June 11. Interestingly enough, Garcia's attorney had asked the jury for a $40-million award. MTA officials said they accept the jury’s verdict. They even tell the Associated Press that it was an “unfortunate situation” and that they tried to settle the case and had told the plaintiff’s attorney all along that they would cover his medical expenses. According to the plaintiff’s attorney, MTA had offered $5 million to settle the case before the trial began.

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Seven people were injured, two critically, when a transit bus and pickup truck collided Monday in East Pomona, according to an Associated Press article posted on the San Jose Mercury News’ Web site.

Los Angeles County fire officials responded to the crash a little before 10 a.m. Monday.
According to news reports, one victim was in critical condition and was flown to a trauma center and another victim, who was originally listed in moderate condition was downgraded to “critical,” officials said.

Five other victims with mild to moderate injuries were treated and transported to local hospitals.

The names of the victims were not immediately released and the cause of the crash is still under investigation.

The bus was operated by Foothill Transit, which provides bus service in the San Gabriel and Pomona valleys.

As mentioned, the incident is still under investigation and we don’t know who was at fault. But we at Bisnar | Chase have dealt with hundreds of bus accident cases over the years that ended up in serious personal injuries or death.

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