Federal accident investigators have concluded that bus passengers may be at more risk than anyone thought. Testifying at a hearing on the bus fire that killed 23 elderly hurricane evacuees last year, the safety experts said fires aboard buses appear to be under-reported.
Experts testifying before the National Transportation Safety Board estimate more than 2,500 fires occur each year on buses, but there is no exact count because records are not collected and stored in a central database. NTSB board member Kathryn Higgins says she is surprised there have not been more fatalities.
The issue grabbed center stage last September as a bus carrying residents of a nursing home caught fire in heavy traffic as Gulf Coast residents fled from the path of Hurricane Rita. Twenty three passengers died.
Investigators of that accident said the fire might have been contained but oxygen tanks used by some passengers quickly added intensity to the blaze. The driver and 21 passengers escaped, but the accident was the worst loss of life in a single incident associated with the storm.
Investigators traced the fire to an overheated ball bearing on one of the bus' wheels. Following the fire, Federal regulators shut down Global Limo, the bus' operator, which had failed to pass three previous safety reviews.
After the fire, the NTSB reported numerous other safety problems in its investigation of the accident. Its report said the five-pound fire extinguisher aboard the vehicle was unable to put out a burning tire. Witnesses also reported that some of the bus windows, which serve as emergency exits, could not be opened.
