Fiery Crash Between FedEx Tractor Trailer and School Bus in California Kills 10

The fiery wreck that killed 10 when a FedEx tractor trailer van hit a high school bus in California is every parent’s worst nightmare.

CNN reported the collision on Thursday evening in Northern California, killed 10 people including both drivers, five students and three chaperones, according to the California Highway Patrol. The crash happened a little after 5:30 p.m. on the interstate near Orland, a small city about 100 miles north of Sacramento.

The high school students were on a trip to visit Humboldt State University, when the FedEx truck crossed a median.

“I went outside, and everything was in flames already,” a local resident, Luis Lopez, told CNN affiliate KXTV. “There were a couple of explosions after that.”

The reason for this terrible accident remains under investigation, the Highway Patrol said. The investigation could take months. Many of the more than 40 students on board escaped through a window that someone had kicked open. They were seen running for their lives to the other side of Interstate 5 before hearing an explosion and seeing the bus burst into flame. About 34 people were injured in the crash and blaze.

My thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives and all the injured people from this terrible tragedy. Past bus crashes have raised safety concerns about the tour bus industry, but this accident seems to have been the fault of the tractor trailer driver. It’s not clear what caused the driver to cross a median. Driver fatigue is a major risk factor in the commercial trucking industry.

As Virginia trucking accident injury lawyers, we see numerous crashes every year involving big rigs that cause a loss of life in the Commonwealth. We have represented many families of those who have lost their lives in tractor trailer crashes. If you have been hurt in a trucking accident or if you have lost a loved one, call 757.455.0077.