Sept. 25--A crash that killed four people and injured dozens in Seattle on Thursday may have been caused by a mechanical issue on one of Seattle's Ride the Ducks amphibious tour vehicles, police said.
The amphibious vehicle, known as a duck, was headed north on the Aurora bridge about 11:15 a.m. when it collided with a charter bus that was going south, according to the Seattle Police Department. Two passenger vehicles were also involved in the crash.
Witnesses told investigators that the duck vehicle may have been dealing with a mechanical issue shortly before the crash, according to a Seattle Police Department news release.
Four people were killed in the wreck, Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins said in a news briefing.
"We've had a terrible tragedy," Seattle Mayor Ed Murray said during the briefing. "There's been a terrible loss of life."
Scenes broadcast by local media showed the crumpled front end of the white duck vehicle against the side of the charter bus. Shattered glass, metal siding and a tire littered the roadway, and the side of the bus appeared to have been sheared off in the collision.
Officials did not immediately identify the dead. It remains unclear which vehicle was at fault in the crash, but police officials said there was no evidence that drivers were intoxicated or otherwise impaired.
About 45 students and staff members from North Seattle College's international program were aboard the bus, according to the college. They were traveling to Safeco Field as part of a student orientation program.
It was not clear whether any of the students were among the dead or injured. Murray said his staff was in the process of contacting their countries' consulates.
Earlier in the day, Fire Lt. Sue Stengl told reporters that two of those killed were aboard the Ride the Ducks vehicle.
At least 50 people were extricated from the damaged vehicles and evaluated for injuries, Stengl said.
Seventeen people were taken to Harborview Medical Center, the hospital said shortly before 3 p.m. Eight of those patients were in critical condition, eight were in serious condition, and one remained in satisfactory condition, the hospital said.
The injured suffered face and head injuries, according to the hospital.
Three of those patients were in surgery, it said.
The youngest patient was a 17-year-old girl, and the oldest a 61-year-old man, the hospital said.
Thirty other people were taken to area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Harborview.
The Aurora Bridge, which spans Lake Union and connects the city's Queen Anne and Fremont neighborhoods, is to be closed for several hours.
Treating injuries from the crash severely taxed the local blood supply, according to Bloodworks Northwest, which put out an emergency call for donors after receiving numerous requests for blood components from local hospitals.
According to Ride the Ducks' website, the company has been operating its DUKW vehicles, nicknamed ducks, since 1997. The vehicles can traverse both land and water, and they came to prominence during World War II, when they were used to move items from offshore supply ships to military units on land.
The company has not been the subject of any unsafe driving or vehicle maintenance violations in the last two years, according to data made public by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
However, it has been involved in several accidents in the city, according to the Seattle Times. A pedestrian was struck by a Ride the Ducks vehicle in July, and the company was also involved in crashes in 2010 and 2011, the newspaper reported.
One of the company's vehicles was also involved in a crash last February, according to the safety administration database. Two people were injured, and police issued a citation to the bus driver. Additional information was not available.
Ride the Ducks has a fleet of 28 vehicles and 35 drivers, according to the safety administration. The company's website says all of its drivers are required to hold both a U.S. Coast Guard master's license and a commercial driver's license.
A Ride the Ducks spokeswoman said the company would release a statement later in the day.
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UPDATES
4:54 p.m.: This story was updated throughout.
3:20 p.m.: This story was updated with additional information from Harborview Medical Center.
2:15 p.m.: This story was updated with additional information from North Seattle College, the fire department and Harborview Medical Center.
1:30 p.m.: This story was updated with additional information from Mayor Ed Murray and the FMCSA and a comment from a Ride the Ducks spokeswoman.
This story was originally published at 1:12 p.m.
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