Pembroke, N.Y. — Five people died and dozens more were injured during a bus rollover crash Friday on the New York Thruway in Pembroke, according to State Police.
Another 49 passengers were taken to area hospitals for treatment, troopers said in a news release Friday evening.
The driver was distracted, Major Andre J. Ray, the state police commander who oversees the Thruway, said Friday evening. He did not specify how.
There were 54 people on board the bus, Ray said. Initial reports put the number at 52. Also, an earlier report that a child was killed was incorrect, troopers clarified Friday evening.
The passengers range in age from 1 to 74 years old, Ray said.
The Buffalo News reported Friday evening that no other patients were in a “life-threatening status.” Those who died perished at the scene, Ray said.
The tour bus was headed from Niagara Falls to New York City, troopers said. The accident occurred around 12:30 p.m. in the town of Pembroke in Genesee County, about 30 miles east of Buffalo.
The bus lost control, went into the median, overcorrected and ended up in a ditch on the south side of the Thruway, Trooper James O’Callaghan said at the scene during the afternoon.
The crash shut down the Thruway in both directions for hours. The westbound lanes fully reopened around 5 p.m.
Nearly everyone on the bus suffered some injury, from bruises and cuts to serious conditions, O’Callaghan said during the afternoon briefing.
“This bus was going full speed,” he said, and it did not hit any other vehicles. It came to rest on its passenger side, O’Callaghan said.
The bus, owned by M&Y Tour Inc., was chartered from New York City and was returning from Niagara Falls, State Police said in a news release Friday evening.
The driver was described by troopers as alive and well, and cooperating with the investigation. No charges were filed as of Friday evening.
The injured were taken to Rochester and Buffalo hospitals, he said.
Nearly half of the passengers — 24 people — were taken to Erie County Medical Center, according to Dr. Jennifer Pugh.
Around 4:30 p.m., 20 were still being treated, including two in surgery and two in trauma ICU, according to Dr. Jeffrey Brewer, the hospital’s chief of surgery.
Erie County Medical Center sent six staff out to the bus to help treat and triage patients, according to the hospital. One hospital official said the day brought the most patients from one event in his 25 years on the job.
Many of the passengers were of Indian, Chinese or Filipino ethnicity, he said.
Authorities said some of the passengers spoke English. At the Erie County hospital, staff brought in several translation specialists to help with communication.
Shortly after 5 p.m., westbound lanes on the New York Thruway near the fatal tour bus crash in Pembroke were reopened, State Police said.
A Family Assistance Center for the victims and their families has been established at the Amherst Senior Center, 370 John James Audubon Parkway, Buffalo, NY 14228.
Anyone who may have witnessed the crash or has dash cam footage is asked to contact State Police at SP Batavia at (716) 289-4279.
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