Nearly 80 people were injured after a double-decker tour bus in Manhattan collided with a city bus Thursday evening, officials stated.
Officials with the New York City Fire Department revealed that nearly 80 people suffered varying degrees of injuries after two buses collided near 23rd street and First Avenue around 7:00 p.m, CBS News reported. A total of 27 people were hospitalized, including the driver of the tour bus, while another 50 were treated for injuries at the scene, the outlet stated. (RELATED: School Bus Crashes Head On Into Dump Truck, Sending 15 Kids To Hospital)
Dozens of people were injured Thursday when a double-decker bus and an MTA bus crashed in Manhattan. Fortunately, none of those injuries are life-threatening. @DBrennanTV reports. https://t.co/JmuvZDKkjc
— CBS New York (@CBSNewYork) July 7, 2023
“Any time you have two buses involved you have a significant number of patients that likely need to be treated,” FDNY Deputy Chief Kevin Murphy stated, according to CNN. “So seeing that quantity of people right away, I think the units did a very good job getting them off the bus quickly and taken to the appropriate resources.”
While the cause of the crash is still officially under investigation, MTA Transit President Richard Davey stated that the collision was caused when the double-decker tour bus ran a red light and “T-boned” the city bus that was making its way through the intersection.
“Hit it twice, it was going so fast I think,” Davey told ABC 7 New York
“The impact felt like it was almost an earthquake,” passenger on the city bus, Ishrak Jahan, told CBS News. “The whole bus was rattling and shaking. I heard the lady next to me scream, so I looked up and I saw this bus barreling towards us … I just saw glass everywhere for a second. It was honestly like I was in a movie. And it took a couple of seconds to snap back into reality when everyone started screaming. I saw blood.”
Injuries to passengers did not appear to be life-threatening, though many suffered fractures, cuts and bruises.
“We’re all quite fortunate it was not much worse,” FDNY Deputy Chief Paul Hopper told the outlet.