NY casino bus flips
30+ hurt in snow crash on way to Mohegan
MADISON, Conn. — A charter bus traveling through a snowstorm from New York City to a Connecticut casino flipped onto its side Monday, injuring more than 30 people and closing the northbound lanes of Interstate 95.
The bus, which departed from Flushing, Queens, and was on its way to the Mohegan Sun casino, crashed at around 12:30 p.m. in Madison, east of New Haven.
There were about 70 people on the bus, according to State Police trooper Kelly Grant. Passengers were taken to several hospitals, with the most seriously injured going to YaleNew Haven Hospital.
Mark D’Antonio, a Yale hospital spokesman, said it received eight patients, far fewer than the 30 they had originally been told to expect. One person suffered several broken bones and the others were less seriously injured with cuts and bruises, he explained.
“They initially expected worse in the field and told us to prepare for the worst,” D’Antonio said. “Once they got down to nuts and bolts and triaged everybody, they realized it was not as serious as they thought.”
The uninjured were taken to a nearby gymnasium.
The accident occurred during a snowstorm that was expected to drop up to a foot of snow on parts of the state.
Video from near the scene showed the bus on its side off the right shoulder of the highway’s northbound side, but facing south.
Cody Chapman, a spokesman for the casino in Uncasville, said the bus is owned by Dahlia Inc. and operated by VMC East Coast. He said other buses from the New York area were rerouted back to the city until weather conditions improved.
In a statement, VMC East Coast said it was saddened “that this has happened today” and thanked firefighters, paramedics and police.
“We pray that all our passengers are OK and will be safely returned to their families soon,” the statement read. “We may release more information in the coming days.”
Gov. Dannel Malloy’s office was monitoring developments after the crash. In a statement, the governor said his thoughts were with those who were injured.