Seven people, including at least two children, were killed, and dozens more were wounded when a bus rolled over off a highway in Mississippi shortly before 1:00 a.m. on Saturday, officials said.
The bus, which Autobuses Regiomontanos owned, was headed for Mexico when it experienced a tire failure and veered off of Interstate 20 before turning over near Vicksburg, CNN reported.
No other vehicles were involved in the accident.
A pair of siblings, aged six and 16, was among the seven fatalities, according to Warren County Coroner Doug Huskey.
The Mississippi Highway Patrol told the outlet that 37 other passengers had to be transported to hospitals with unspecified injuries.
Six of the fatalities were declared at the scene, and the seventh victim died at the hospital, highway patrol officials noted.
They added that the bus involved was a 2018 Volvo.
“Anytime you have people injured or killed, it’s tragic but when you have a situation like this where you have multiple fatalities and multiple injuries, it makes it even worse,” Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace told WAPT.
A tow truck driver at the scene told the outlet that the bus rolled into a ditch, and several riders were ejected from the vehicle.
It is unclear where the trip originated, but it is known that the bus was heading to Mexico.
According to Mississippi Highway Patrol spokesperson Kervin Stewart, “Several Mexican identification documents” were found on the bus.
Huskey confirmed to CBS News that both children who died were from Guatemala and that other passengers were also Guatemalan, though no names have been released.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating the incident:
The NTSB, in coordination with the Mississippi Highway Patrol, is sending a go-team to conduct a safety investigation into Saturday’s crash involving a motorcoach roadway departure and roll-over after experiencing a tire failure while on Interstate 20 near Vicksburg, Mississippi.
— NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) August 31, 2024
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