ORLAND, Calif. — It was a busload of opportunity: young, low-income, motivated students, destined to become the first in their families to go to college, journeying from the concrete sprawl of Los Angeles to a remote redwood campus 650 miles north.
Those dreams shattered for some Thursday in an explosive freeway collision that left 10 dead....
Desperate families awaited word about loved ones Friday, while investigators tried to figure out why a FedEx big rig swerved across the grassy divide of California’s key artery before sideswiping a car and slamming into the tour bus, which burst into flames....
The bus was among three Humboldt State University had chartered as part of its two-day Preview Plus program to bring prospective students to tour the Arcata campus, according to university officials. Before launching the event Friday, university vice president Peg Blake’s voice broke as she asked a crowded theater for a moment of silence in honor of everyone affected by the accident....
‘‘I can only imagine the excitement of these high school students as they were on their way to visit a college campus, and the pride of the adults who were accompanying them,’’ said US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan in a statement. ‘‘Our young people are our greatest treasure, and this loss is heartbreaking.’’
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The 44 teenagers aboard, from dozens of different Southern California high schools, were participating in a program that invites prospective low-income or first-generation college students to visit Humboldt. They were supposed to join hundreds more potential students from across California and the West for a long weekend....
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NEXT DAY UPDATE:
"Witnesses saw fire on truck before deadly bus accident" by Fenit Nirappil and Joan Lowy | Associated Press April 13, 2014
ORLAND, Calif. — A couple said a FedEx tractor-trailer was already on fire when it tore across a median, sideswiped their car, and slammed into a bus carrying high school students, adding a new twist to the investigation of a crash that killed 10 people.
Initial reports by police indicated the truck swerved to avoid a sedan that was traveling in the same direction in this town about 100 miles north of Sacramento, then went across the median. There was no mention of the truck being on fire.
But Officer Lacey Heitman, a spokeswoman for California Highway Patrol, said she could not confirm if the truck was on fire before the collision until all evidence was gathered.
National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Keith Holloway said the agency is investigating as part of what’s expected to be a lengthy and broad investigation, Federal transportation authorities are examining whether fire safety measures they previously recommended for motor coaches could have allowed more of the 48 bus occupants to escape unharmed.
The NTSB’s Mark Rosekind said his agency will not only look into the cause of the crash, but what regulators can do to stop any similar ones from happening in the future....
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"Bus drivers, riders glad service is rolling again" by Wilson Ring | Associated Press April 05, 2014
BURLINGTON, Vt. — The buses were rolling again Friday in Vermont’s largest county, ending a nearly three-week strike that forced almost 10,000 people a day to find alternative ways to get to school, jobs, or appointments.
There was a sense of relief, rather than bitterness among the riders at the Chittenden County Transportation Authority’s main bus station on Cherry Street in downtown Burlington.
‘‘I’m just glad the strike is over and they met halfway and it’s over; it’s been a hard winter,’’ said Maria Twitty of Burlington, who was waiting for the bus just after 7 a.m. Friday to take her daughter to school, then visit her mother.
Twitty said she and her daughter walked a lot during the 18-day strike.
‘‘Oh, my goodness, it was a lot of exercise,’’ she said.
The strike, which began March 17, was the first in the 40-year history of the CCTA, whose buses carry about 9,700 people a day, including about 2,400 Burlington public school students. Both sides had haggled over wages, disciplinary action from anonymous tips, part-time drivers, and split shifts.
Fare-free service will run through April 13 as a gift to riders for the inconvenience.
Driver Derek Lorrain had spent much of the strike picketing on Church Street, adjacent to the Cherry Street station. By early Friday he was back on the road, having driven to Milton before he was scheduled to drive in the city.
He said had not heard any complaints from the riders.
‘‘I had expected a little grief from some of them, but, you know, so far so good. They’re happy to see us and we’re happy to see them,’’ Lorrain said.
The union voted overwhelmingly Thursday for the new contract. The CCTA board ratified the contract later Thursday.
In a statement issued late Thursday, CCTA said officials were pleased with the new contract and they thanked drivers for helping the company resume service quickly.
For Lorrain, the sticking points in the talks were disciplinary procedures and shift lengths. He said he felt the union did well.
‘‘In negotiations you ask for a lot, and you come out with the most important things that you can get,’’ Lorrain said.
