Putney Bus Accident Injures 17 passengers

Friday afternoon a bus carrying 45 people veered off Interstate 91 in Putney and went down an embankment, coming to rest on its side. Eight passengers with minor injuries were transported to Springfield Hospital.

VIDEO: Bus Crash Victims Describe Injuries, Scene

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1300665

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STATE POLICE PRESS RELEASE

TROOPER: Lt. Kraig Laporte

STATION: Brattleboro

DATE/TIME: Friday, December 03, 2010 at 3:51PM

LOCATION: I-91 Southbound at MM22

Rollover Bus Crash Near Putney, Vermont

12/3/2010 - Putney, VT – At approximately 3:51PM,
today, the Vermont State Police and Westminster Fire
and Rescue were dispatched to a reported bus
rollover crash on Interstate 91 Southbound at MM22,
near Putney, Vermont. Upon arrival, emergency
responded assessed the incident and injuries. Putney
Fire and Rescue were subsequently dispatched to the
scene.

I-91 Southbound at Exit 5 is closed, due to this
incident. I-91 Northbound at MM 23 is limited to one
lane of travel. Motorists are advised to use caution in
this area.

Lt. Kraig Laporte has confirmed that the bus was
carrying some members of the University of
Massachusetts on a ski trip. The group was traveling
in three buses, however only one bus was involved in
the crash.

Emergency responders are still on scene, assisting
patients and gathering information.

For media questions, please contact the Vermont
State Police Public Information Officer, Stephanie
Dasaro, at 802-241-5277 or 802-279-9773.                                             Bus with UMass students on ski trip crashes in Vt.                   Posted: Dec 03, 2010 5:42 PM Updated: Dec 03, 2010 11:02 PM             By JOHN CURRAN         Associated Press             MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - A tour bus carrying University of Massachusetts students and others on a weekend ski trip to Quebec crashed Friday on a Vermont highway, injuring 17 people.         The bus, one of three traveling in a caravan, veered off Interstate 91 in Putney and went down an embankment, coming to rest on its side. Twenty-eight people on the bus were unhurt.             The bus driver was taken by helicopter to               Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., and was listed in stable condition.         The group was on a private ski tour that was not affiliated with the school, UMass spokesman Patrick Callahan said. Not all the passengers on the bus were UMass students, he said.         The school sent university vehicles to Vermont to transport students back to campus, Callahan said.         Seven passengers were taken to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital with cuts and bruises, and they were treated and released, spokeswoman Barbara Gentry said. An eighth had a neck injury and was X-rayed, but he, too, was released, she said.         Eight passengers with minor injuries were treated and released from Springfield Hospital.         Police initially said 30 people were injured, three critically, but later revised the figure to 17 injured.         "It's better than we originally anticipated," said Stephanie Dasaro, a spokeswoman for the Vermont State Police, who cited the chaotic scene for the discrepancy.         It's unclear how the crash occurred, Dasaro said. A crash reconstruction team was on the scene investigating Friday night, she said.         No citations have been issued.