Davis Prepares for Possibility of Bus Crash

John Demas

Attorney
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The city of Davis is taking a proactive step toward lessening the damage that can be caused by bus crashes. In recent months we have seen the devastation they can cause. Four bus crashes have occurred in California since October of 2008. The latest was Saturday, May 2, 2009, near Perris, California. The passengers were headed back to Colton after a city-sponsored trip to San Diego for a Cinco de Mayo festival. All 28 passengers were injured, eight of them critically.

These crashes are becoming more and more frequent. Just last week I wrote about the Soledad crash that killed five people. Citizens are still reeling from that horrific incident and now we are faced with a fourth bus crash. Before investigators even have a chance to determine what caused the Soledad crash, the Perris crash occurs.

Perris actually has very different circumstances. The bus veered to the right and left the roadway on I-215. It collided with a sound wall and continued forward still veering to the right and scraping against the wall until the wall stopped. The bus then proceeded to continue forward and veer right until it hit a second sound wall.

I know that investigators are working hard to find out what is going on with all of these crashes, but it is worrisome that they are all happening at the same time. My law partner blogged about negligent hiring after the Colusa crash because the driver was unlicenced and not supposed to be driving. The Squaw Creek bus crash killed one person and injured twenty-seven others. Investigators are looking into driver fatigue as a cause.

People have begun calling for stricter punishments and increased regulation. Will that really solve the problems? Do we really know why these crashes are happening? Is it human error or is there some sort of mechanical defect in the design of these tour buses? There are so many questions and so few answers. In time, investigators will submit reports and I can only hope that they will find a way to prevent future collisions that cause so much injury and death.

In the meantime, the City of Davis is fighting back in another way. A problem with the Colusa Casino crash was with the emergency response. Many agencies responded, but helicopters that will actually closer to the crash, didn’t get the call. Since then, response time has been improved, but Davis officials believe that practice makes perfect.

Their simulation put a bus on it’s side and used real-life scenarios such as victims refusing to leave the side of their friend, miscommunication between agencies, and a high volume of victims needing care. The emergency responders and hospital worked together to see what worked, what didn’t work, and how to best handle the situation if the worst should occur in their town.

It is a step in the right direction, and although we hope they will never need to use the knowledge they gained in this exercise, it is commendable that they are aware of the possibility and doing something to prepare for it.