Wyoming Bus Crash: 8 Hospitalized After Tour Bus Flips

A Wyoming bus crash in Grand Teton National Park led to the hospitalization of eight people. It seems that all of the passengers on the bus at the time of the accident were taken to the hospital, but most were quickly released. Luckily there were no fatalities in the accident, though two victims were airlifted to a medical center in Idaho and reports indicate that they are in fair condition. Six others were hospitalized at least overnight.

The Associated Press (via ABC News) shares that authorities believe the Wyoming bus crash happened because the driver over-corrected when the bus started to go off the pavement. The bus then flipped on its side and slid. There were no other vehicles involved in the accident.

Jackie Skaggs, the spokeswoman for the park, says, “This could have been so much worse.”

According to the National Parks Traveler, she added that there was no oncoming traffic when the bus flipped over and slid down the highway. Photos of the Wyoming bus crash scene show the vehicle lying on its side across the road horizontally. Skaggs added that it was a very lucky thing there was no other traffic at the time of the accident, saying, “Can you imagine? They would have had no place to go.”

At this point no charges have been filed, and it seems that the bus driver was one of the people admitted to the hospital. His name has not been released and his injuries are not known. Reports indicate that the driver stayed with the bus passengers until they had all be taken care of, and a park ranger then took the driver to the hospital.

Local News 8 indicates that there were 26 passengers on the vehicle at the time of the Wyoming bus crash. Reports indicate that all of them were taken to the hospital to be checked out, though for the most part the injuries were minor. The passengers are said to have been part of a Chinese tour group.

The commercial tour bus was traveling on North Highway 89 when it seems the front tire went off the road. The group was heading through Grand Teton National Park, headed to West Yellowstone, Montana. After the Wyoming bus crash, the road was closed for around five hours. While the Wyoming bus crash was certainly an inconvenience for those on board when it happened, those in the group were seemingly quite lucky in comparison to some other notable bus accidents of late.

[Image via NDTV]