Approximately 30 passengers were aboard a Leo’s Tours bus headed to Mexico when it crashed on I-35 in Lytle, Texas. At least one person was seriously injured when the bus driver crashed into the car ahead of it, pushing that car into another and triggering a chain-reaction crash on the interstate.
Traffic was already moving slowly on I-35 before the commercial bus crash. Nearly two dozen train cars had derailed in downtown Lytle, with some colliding with empty propane tanks. Because of the potential for a gas-fed flareup, downtown Lylte was evacuated by emergency responders.
The Leo’s Tour bus driver was not properly licensed to be transporting passengers in a commercial bus, according to initial reports from the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office. The tour bus driver had only a Class C Commercial Driver’s License, rather than the required Class B CDL.
A driver with a Class C license is restricted from driving a bus that can carry more than 23 passengers, including the driver, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. Drivers of larger commercial bus- those that can carry more than 24 passengers – must obtain a Class B driver’s license.
This most recent Texas bus crash follows closely behind the crash of a Cardinal Coach Line bus on a Dallas turnpike just a few weeks ago. That fatal bus crash claimed the lives of two passengers headed to Oklahoma. The cause of that crash is still under investigation.
The Texas Department of Public Safety is leading the investigation into the Lytle, Texas bus crash. Once its investigation is complete, local authorities will takeover pursuing any potential criminal charges.
Source: WOAI, “Several injured in bus crash on Interstate 35,” May 3, 2013