Thirty-two people were injured and two died after a bus crashed on the icy Interstate 90, just a mile off Clinton, at around 7am in January, leaving about eight people still seriously injured to this day.
The Rimrock Trailways bus line skidded off the road and crashed, with all its passengers either dead or injured, a report by the Montana Highway Patrol revealed. At the time of the accident, it was said that some of the passengers were ejected from the bus when it leaned to its side, breaking the windows in the driver’s side. Three of them were found pinned under the bus, while the others were sprawled across the ground, writhing in pain.
Two who died were identified to be 56-year-old Robert Lange, a truck driver from Kalispell, and 60-year-old Fatimah Amatullah, who was on her way to Seattle to see relatives.
Investigations into the cause of the ac cident found that it was the icy road that did most of the damage, although the bus was also running at a speed of between 65 and 70 miles per hour. The vehicle reportedly slid 150 feet when it got into the median, so investigators remain in the dark as when the bus had started going out of control. When the bus bounced as it slid, investigators believed that was when the windows broke and people were ejected from the vehicle. The bus was found on its side.
“It was a very traumatic scene, with around 20 people walking wounded and screaming in pain,” an observer said, declining to be identified. Some of the injured were immediately rushed to the nearest hospital with mixed major and minor concussions, while the two were already dead on the spot. The driver was among those who had been seriously hurt from the incident.
In a fatal accident where the cause is largely unknown and most likely pointing to natural causes, is the bus company still liable? Bus accident lawyers will tell us that any injury suffered while in the confines of a public vehicle will place the operator accountable for anything that happens and, hence, victims with both major and minor injuries may file for claim. As long as you have the supporting medical papers to back your claim for compensation, our team of lawyers can provide assistance to any damages claims relating to bus accident claims, no matter how minor.
If you have been in a bus accident in the past months or know someone who was, do get in touch with a qualified bus accident lawyer to see how much compensation you can get from the damage.