Nine people are dead after a bus crash on an Oregon roadway. The motor vehicle accident happened when the bus was travelling in snowy conditions on Highway 84 in the eastern part of our state. All of the 38 other people on the bus at the time of the crash suffered injuries and were taken to local hospitals.
Though Oregon officials continue to investigate the bus accident, they believe that the tour bus was on the roadway just after the road had been sanded by state officials. However, the highway is infamous for black ice, blizzards and multi-vehicle accidents, according to one official. Many people end up suffering injuries in accidents, they say, because of the combination of cruise control being used and treacherous conditions.
It is unclear form early reports if speed combined with road conditions to result in the fatal crash. However, the tour bus had driven by at least four highway signs indicating the potential dangers on the road ahead before the incident occurred. These are just a few of the evidentiary details to be reviewed by state authorities as they seek to find out just what happened in the deadly event.
The motor vehicle accident was the most deadly in our state since 1971. Now many families are left to seek answers as to why their loved ones suffered injuries or killed as a result of this incident. As a part of the recovery process, the survivors and the injured may also seek information to determine if they are able to make a claim for the damages that they suffered under our state’s personal injury or wrongful death laws. Such a claim could offer some economic relief to those that were injured, but they may never recover from the loss of loved ones on the snowy mountainside.
Source: oregonlive.com, “Oregon bus crash: The tragedy focuses attention on the treacherous I-84 pass,” Richard Cockle, Jan. 4, 2013
