BILOXI, Miss. _ Four people have died and 34 were injured when a freight train collided with a charter bus that appeared to be stuck on railroad tracks at the Main Street crossing.
Biloxi Police Chief John Miller confirmed the first three fatalities in a news conference shortly after the 2:14 p.m. crash Tuesday. A fourth person died shortly afterward.
The bus had come to the Mississippi Coast from Austin, Texas. A total of 46 people were on the bus; seven of the injured declined to have medical treatment, Miller said.
The charter group was on a seven-day trip organized by the Bastrop Senior Center, according to The Austin Statesman. The group was on the third day of its trip and was headed to Boomtown Casino in Biloxi when the crash occurred, the Statesman reported.
Ameet Patel, senior vice president of regional operations for Penn National Gaming and owner of Hollywood Gulf Coast Casino and Boomtown Biloxi Casino, said the group was previously at Hollywood Casino and was headed to their sister property for the day.
Firefighters used the Jaws of Life to remove two people from the wreckage, said Biloxi Fire Chief Joe Boney, incident commander. They also used ladders to remove people from the bus as sirens blared and people yelled out. They used a car near the scene as a stepladder.
The train was eastbound when it collided with a northbound charter bus, pushing the bus 300 feet, said Biloxi spokesman Vincent Creel.
Why the bus was on the tracks remains unclear. Miller said he wasn't sure if the bus had an engine problem. CSX Transportation sent investigators to the scene. It wasn't clear if the National Transportation Safety Board had been notified.
Miller said it's the first time Biloxi has had a tragedy of this magnitude.
"We had a lot of people here in a hurry," Miller said.
"It's a terribly tragedy. I know that there's a lot of families that are going to be impacted here. I just want everyone to know we are doing everything we can do to help everyone on that bus."
Miller said Biloxi police and firefighters had training on what to do in a train emergency just last week and it proved vital in getting victims out of the train wreckage.
Two men who witnessed the crash said it appeared the bus became stuck on the tracks minutes before a CSX train approached, blowing its horn.
"I took off running," said Craig Robinson. He said he intended to tell people to get off the bus, but the train hit the bus before he reached the bus.
Mark Robinson said he saw people getting off the bus before the train struck it.
Emergency personnel scrambled to remove what at first was believed to be about 50 people from the bus.
A doctor who has hospital privileges at Merit Health Biloxi and has an office nearby started setting up a triage area. Keesler Air Force Base sent medics to help.
Dozens of passengers, some in neck braces, sat in a grassy area waiting for further help.
American Medical Response sent ambulance crews. Helicopters were brought in to help transport the wounded. The police chief said air support also came from Hattiesburg and New Orleans. Harrison County sheriff's deputies and the county fire chief also responded.
"It's very chaotic up there," Creel said.
A school bus was brought to the scene for those who had minor injuries.
Singing River Hospital in Pascagoula received 11 patients, with two listed in critical condition and two in fair condition, a spokeswoman said. Ocean Springs Hospital received 11 patients. Three were in critical condition, six were in fair condition and two were stable.
Thirteen of the injured were taken to Merit Health, a hospital spokeswoman said.
All Biloxi fire stations responded and the Gulfport Fire Department sent in reinforcements, Gulfport Fire Chief Mike Beyerstedt said.
The bus, owned by Echo Tours & Charters based in Dallas, has had only one fatality and no crashes in the past two years_until Tuesday, federal transportation records show.
It's the second time in two months that a train has collided with a vehicle at the Main Street crossing. A CSX freight train struck a Pepsi-Cola delivery truck. The tractor-trailer became stuck on a steep grade. The driver of the vehicle, owned by Allen Beverage of Gulfport, got out and called for help but the train couldn't stop in time.
Mayor Andrew "FoFo" Gillich two weeks ago released a list of railroad crossings he said should be closed because they are dangerous. The Main Street crossing was not on the list.
Residents who live near the tracks, though, said the Main Street crossing has been a problem for decades.
One man who lives on Esters Boulevard less than a block where the crash occurred said he's seen many accidents there throughout the years. He said there's a high-grade sign at the tracks, and buses would be better off using the crossing at Caillavet street.
Mark Robinson said that crossing "has been a problem for years" and city officials should close it or figure out a way to make it fully operational.
Another woman who was at the scene said she remembered when a Mardi Gras float got stuck on the track years ago, and the krewe on board had to evacuate before the train struck the float.
