Tour bus crashes in rural Nevada, injures 41

Angie Wagner

Thursday, Sept. 7, 2000 | 9:53 a.m.

A bus full of British tourists crashed in rural Nevada on Thursday, injuring all 41 onboard, including two who lost limbs when the bus skidded 200 feet across a two-lane highway.

Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Richard James said the bus went off U.S. Highway 6 about 30 miles west of Tonopah and the driver tried to overcorrect to the left. The bus traveled across both lanes of traffic, went off the left side of the road and the driver again overcorrected.

The bus then overturned and slid for about 200 feet on its side, causing amputations to two passengers.

Ten people were in critical condition and transported to University Medical Center in Las Vegas and Washoe Medical Center in Reno after the 2:45 p.m. accident.

The 31 others were taken by school bus to the Nye County Regional Medical Center with injuries ranging from broken bones to scratches. Later Thursday, some of those victims were then taken to Reno and Las Vegas hospitals for further treatment.

National Guard helicopters were called in to transport some of the victims. Airplanes were used to transport the most critically injured because regular medical helicopters couldn't make the trip from the remote crash site to Las Vegas or Reno without refueling, James said.

The bus was traveling from Las Vegas to Mammoth Lakes, Calif. It had stopped in Tonopah - 208 miles northwest of Las Vegas - so the tourists could eat lunch. James said the tourists were from England and Wales.

"Wonderful people, just wonderful," said Margie Downing, a waitress who served the group at the Station House hotel-casino about 1:30 p.m. "They were on their way to Mammoth and eventually to Yosemite."

James said the accident was blamed on "driver inattention."

The bus was registered to California Sun Lines Inc. in Chatsworth, Calif.