At least 26 people sustained injuries as a double-decker bus overturned on its side in Interstate 65 south of Indianapolis early Tuesday.
Megabus, an interstate bus carrier was carrying 50 to 60 passengers while travelling from Atlanta to Chicago when it flipped on its side to avoid a vehicle that previously encountered an accident during rainy conditions at about 4:30 a.m. local time on Northbound Interstate 65, stated Indiana State Police Captain David Bursten.
Greenwood Fire Department Battalion Chief Chris Harrell told one passenger was rushed to a hospital and is in critical condition, while 14 had minor injuries and four people suffered moderate injuries.
Passengers were taken to different hospitals including St. Francis Health, Johnson Memorial Hospital, Community Hospital South, Sidney IU Health Methodist Hospital and Lois Eskenazi Hospital.
According to police officials' preliminary investigation, the driver of the car, Logan Thompson, 22 of Columbus became reckless as his auto went into the median barrier. His car then pulled crossways in northbound lanes that blocked the roadway partially. The Megabus then struck the back end part of the car.
Megabus has a satisfactory rating with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration based on records obtained by RTV6. The bus company has no reported crashes from the last two years and holds a good record both of their drivers and buses.
From the records gathered by Indiana State Police 1st Sgt. Ty Utterback, Megabus, the bus showed no faults or mechanical issues that can lead to the crash. The involved bus in the accident is associated with Megabus Southeast LLC Georgia, and is operating 6 million miles, 54 buses and 133 drivers in 2014.
Investigators claimed that rainfall could have caused the crash. More investigations will be done to finally clear the cause of the accident. Toxicology tests were also taken on both drivers of the vehicles.
