Last week, a charter bus on its way from Dallas to Oklahoma City, hit a highway barrier just 2 miles north of Dallas. 18 passengers sustained injuries, and at least one of these persons was critically injured.  Investigators are now looking at the medical condition of the driver as a possible factor in the accident.

Since the accident, there has been some confusion due to the fact that the driver speaks little English.  Soon after the accident, investigators who did not speak Spanish were not able to completely understand what the driver was saying through sign language.  They interpreted wrongly that the bus swerved in front of him and he tried to correct by pulling into the inside shoulder of the highway.

Now, the Texas Department of Public Safety Says that the bus driver likely passed out just before the accident.  According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, Spanish-speaking troopers have interviewed the driver again, and have determined that he suffered a sudden sharp pain in his abdomen just before he lost control of the bus.  According to the driver, the last thing that he remembered was the sudden sharp pain, and then waking up after the accident.

So far, there is no indication that there was any problem with the mechanical functioning of the bus.  Inspections have shown that the driver’s log books are also in order.

In Texas, we are no strangers to bus safety concerns.  A series of bus accidents over the past few years have kept Houston bus accident lawyers busy.  While issues of driver fatigue and distracted driving have been addressed strongly by our legislators, there has been relatively little done to determine that a driver is medically fit to drive.  Our medical testing processes for commercial bus and truck drivers are little more than a joke, and these need to be strengthened in order to keep thousands of passengers safe.

Image courtesy: Flickr – Seattle Municipal Archives

Vuk Vujasinovic is a Board Certified Houston personal injury attorney who practices Houston auto accident and other personal injury cases.

For more info on how Vuk can help you with your potential case please call him at (877) 724-7800 or fill out the contact form on the right.

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