Posted on 09/23/2005 5:08:41 AM PDT by InvisibleChurch
DEATHS: Bus carrying Hurricane Rita evacuees has exploded on Interstate 45 near Dallas...
See 240.
It's no fun....being an illegal alien.
Thank you for the news. We figured this was the case, but there seemed to be a news blackout, or at least a brownout.
We were actually surprised that they even reported this, this late in the game.
I'm reading several conflicting accounts, and all from the same source! Typical media :)
Driver of bus carrying evacuees charged in deadly crash
Excerpt 1:
Sheriff's officials said follow-up interviews that investigators conducted with survivors of the bus crash failed to confirm Robles' heroic actions.
"When we went back and did one-on-one interviews, no one could recall that," said Peritz. "We also heard that it was a wonderful trip, and they stopped to look at bluebonnets. ... You're dealing with elderly persons who might not have 100 percent recall. Even the people with sound minds were traumatized."
But a few new details about what did happen did emerge. For example, Robles did open an air vent in the bus roof after the cab began filling with smoke, and, once outside, attempted to stop the fire by throwing dirt on the flames.
Some believe Robles saved them.
"The bus driver picked me up by my chest and took me off the bus," Billie Barton, an elderly passenger, told The Dallas Morning News, adding that the driver bear-hugged her and pulled her off the bus. "He took me over to a safe place. ... He went back on the bus. People got off and he took them to safety."
Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price said he spoke with sheriff's deputies the day of the fire who reported seeing Robles rescue people.
"They said that the driver had tried to assist with helping to evacuate people from that bus," he said Monday.
Investigators believe poor maintenance caused the bus's rear wheel bearings to fail. Friction caused the wheel to heat up and lock first near Corsicana, where a tire blew. A local mechanic was called to repair it.
No one, including Robles, the mechanic, police or a state transportation representative on the scene apparently recognized that the bus ought to be grounded.
Less then two hours later, the bearing again failed, causing a fire that killed 23 of the 45 passengers on board.
Robles had only a Mexican commercial drivers license and had not obtained a Texas license, which he is required to do after more than 30 days in the state.
Immigration officials arrested Robles after the fire for entering the U.S. illegally. Late last week, federal marshals took him into custody as a criminal material witness.
Sheriff's Department officials declined to further explain why they filed the charges but did not rule out the possibility that other charges may be forthcoming against Global Limo Inc. in South Texas, which subleased the bus from a Maryland company that leased the bus from its Canadian owners.
"It's still a wide-open investigation," said Sgt. Don Peritz, sheriff's spokesman.
Federal regulators shut down Global, Robles' employer, earlier this month after determining that its fleet constituted an imminent hazard to the public.
The driver has been arrested and jailed for negligent homicide, and the driver is an illegal alien.
Oh, and forget all those stupid media sources. Wait till the investigation is completely and released. That will tell the story. They generally don't arrest people for negligent homicide, and being an illegal alien unless they have damn good reason.
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