7 News Belize

Close Shave With Bus Leaves Four Injured
posted (March 26, 2014)

Last night passengers on a James Express Bus experienced a terrible scare after the bus ran off the road. The bus that had left Belmopan 7 last night en route to Belize City –was making its way through St Matthews Village – when it brushed against an 8 wheeler trailer that was travelling in the opposite direction. That caused a front wheel blow out and the bus ran off the highway. Luckily they were no causalities but 4 passengers had were injured and had to be transported to the Western Regional Hospital. Gary Ayuso who is physiotherapist was a passenger on the bus and today he told us what he remembered.

Gary Ayuso – Passenger
"The 7 o'clock express from Belmopan to Belize is a James Express. What happened was that it was 18-wheeler trailer with a wide-load. It was a plow, I believe, a very heavy piece of equipment. And the bus was, I'm not sure; I cannot say who was at fault because I was at like third or fourth seat to the front of the bus, when I heard the collision. Right in my mind, something told me, I believed it was God telling me to lock down into the crash position, which I did, and I braced myself properly. After that, the bus ran off the road. I thought it would have overturned because it actually tilted, like some 45 degrees and came back. After that, there was a lot of screaming. Fortunately, I got up, and I felt a lot of pain, but I was okay enough to help. So, I put on my lights my phone, and the girl behind the driver, the first she told me, 'I am bleeding a lot, but I don't know where.' The second girl on the other seat said, 'I am a nurse, and I know that my hip is broken.' The third girl, she actually was across the aisle, so I picked her up and put her back on her seat. She was the one directly in front of me. I looked at the back, and I saw the girl behind me, she was like half-conscious. I think a bone was protruding from her arm, and she was bleeding there. She was complaining of severe pain on that side. So, the 3 girls in front of me, and the one behind me - like I said, I believe some divine intervention for some reason - but I was able to help them. There was a man - either American or Canadian. He looked like he was trained, so he put on some surgical gloves, and they was tremendous help, his wife and he. They stood by and helped a lot. The ambulance, I called, and there were several people calling. The response was - I believe - bit inadequate. I am not going to bash them too much because we all know that there is one ambulance, and that ambulance looks ancient. When it came, it only had one stretcher, and it had to take patients one at a time to the hospital. If it was a mass casualty - and it could have easily been that - that bus hit - and respect to the driver. He stood with that bus; he held that bus all the way. He fought with it. He also stayed on until the last person got off. He foot was swollen and bleeding, but he actually stayed with the bus. I was the last one; I was off, then he was behind me. If it was a mass casualty event, that it was maybe 3 red-coded, I know that response was going to be very inadequate."

And earlier this month we reported on the fatal traffic accident in Burrell Boom village that took the life of 3 year old Ashley Silva and 28 year old Lindbergh Tucker. It had caused quite uproar after police confirmed that Tucker was under the influence of alcohol and had caused the accident. Tonight we have confirmed that a third victim, Erin Davis has passed away after being in a coma for 16 days at the KHMH. This person was travelling along with Linsbert Tucker in his white Honda SUV.

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