10 killed as tour bus overturns in northern California

Highway Patrol officials say crash occurred on rural road near town of Williams - about 60 miles north of Sacramento.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
bus crash 224.88 ap (photo credit: AP)
bus crash 224.88 ap
(photo credit: AP)
A charter bus traveling to a casino overturned in north-central California on Sunday, killing 10 people and injuring several others. California Highway Patrol officials said the crash happened around 6:10 p.m. on a rural road near the town of Williams - about 60 miles north of Sacramento - as the bus headed to Colusa Casino Resort from Sacramento. California Highway Patrol Commander Fran Clader said Sunday night that 10 people were dead and estimated that 20 to 30 others were injured. CHP dispatcher Terry Troth said the bus ran off the road and rolled over. No other vehicles appeared to be involved in the crash, he said. Troth did not know the extent of the injuries, but he said the victims were being transported to several area hospitals, including Colusa Regional Medical Center and Enloe Medical Center in Chico. Firefighters used flashlights to search the tall grass near the overturned bus, which lay in a ditch, Sunday night for more possible bodies. The bus, which was covered in mud, had a crumpled roof and broken windows. Laura Hennum, a spokeswoman at Enloe Medical Center, told The Sacramento Bee that four patients in critical condition and two with serious injuries had been admitted. Troth said emergency responders were having trouble communicating with the passengers because many of them were of Laotian descent.