More than a dozen people were hurt Saturday night, when a charter bus carrying members of Martinsburg High School’s girls basketball team crashed along Interstate 64 near Beckley, West Virginia.
Charter Bus May Have Hit Black Ice Before Veering Off I-64 Onramp
The February 2nd accident occurred shortly before 9:00 p.m., just moments after 12 members of the Lady Bulldogs varsity squad departed the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center, site of the Big Atlantic Classic Tournament.
According to a statement from Berkeley County Schools, the 15-passenger bus suddenly veered off the road as it entered a sharp turn on the Eisenhower Avenue entrance to I-64 East.
A posting on one student’s Twitter account indicated the vehicle slid on black ice and flipped at least four times downhill.
Martinsburg High School Student Airlifted to Charleston
Although most passengers escaped the bus with assistance from other motorists, first responders used hand tools and hydraulics to free two trapped passengers and the driver.
Paramedics transferred 14 people to area hospitals for non-life-threatening injuries, including one student airlifted to a trauma center in Charleston, West Virginia.
Fortunately, everyone was out of hospital by 1:00 a.m.
The team spent the night at the Glade Springs Resort, courtesy of West Virginia’s governor, before returning home Sunday afternoon.
West Virginia Charter Bus Crashed in Poorly-Lit Construction Zone
The Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department and West Virginia State Police are leading the investigation into Saturday night’s accident.
Among other things, the sheriff’s office noted that the bus went off the road in a poorly-lit construction zone.
The driver’s lack of familiarity with the highway may have also contributed to the crash.
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