damn what a shame... probably carried them to a casino. my condolences to the families...

http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_10654025

Bus driver in fatal California crash is arrested


By Judy Lin

Associated Press
Article Launched: 10/06/2008 06:28:25 PM PDT

WILLIAMS, Calif. (AP) — A bus driver with a string of motor vehicle offenses and a history of substance abuse was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence Monday, hours after his casino-bound charter bus ran into a ditch, killing eight people.
Investigators also said the bus had an invalid license plate, and they were looking into whether the driver had proper permits to operate the vehicle. The bus ran off the road Sunday while taking passengers to a northern California casino. About 30 people were injured.
Records show 52-year-old Quintin Watts of Stockton had been cited for speeding and other violations that resulted in loss of his license for nearly two years. He regained his driving privileges last January.
Watts was arrested as he lay critically injured in his hospital bed. His mother said he had wrestled with drug and alcohol problems, was jailed several times on drug charges and had smashed a car carrying a friend into a tree a few years ago, though neither was seriously hurt.
He was a longtime truck driver, but had been unable to find a trucking job since being released from jail on a domestic violence charge six months ago, his mother said.
Chaney Mae Watts said she believed the crash came on her son's first day behind the wheel of the bus after several training trips watching the owner drive. She and her husband told their son they were uncomfortable with him driving a vehicle that carried people instead of cargo.
"He wasn't the best driver," she said. "He knew we didn't want him to drive."
The accident was at least the eighth serious crash in the U.S. in the last three years involving buses carrying people to and from casinos.
Authorities were investigating whether prescription or nonprescription drugs or alcohol, or a combination, were involved in the crash. Blood test results are not expected for two to six weeks.
"We believe he was driving under the influence of something. That's why we placed him under arrest," said California Highway Patrol spokesman Robert Kays.
Another CHP spokesman, Patrick Landreth, said any criminal proceedings would be on hold while the driver is treated for his major injuries.
Colusia County District Attorney John Poyner said Monday it will be at least two to three months before the full accident reports are available and any criminal charges are made.
The bus carrying the driver and 42 passengers, many Laotian, was heading to the Colusa Casino Resort. According to a witness, it drifted off a rural two-lane road before the driver "overcorrected" and swerved back. The bus ejected some passengers as it rolled and crushed others, Landreth said.
"The roof was collapsed down, the windows were broken out, and the bus was not only rolled over onto its side, it rolled completely over," Landreth said. "It was facing the opposite direction and it was on its wheels."
Families flooded hospitals looking for relatives who may have been involved in the crash.
Yvonne Haynes, 35, of Merced got a phone call Sunday night from her brother Tou Xiong, 29, saying there had been a bus accident. They started calling hospitals looking for their mother.
"We couldn't find her," said Xiong. "She came in as a Jane Doe. Her purse was lost in the accident and she did not have any ID."
Finally, at 3 a.m., the siblings found their mother at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento. Mai Cha, 74, of Sacramento has a broken rib, face and right wrist and with the tubes in her mouth, she cannot speak, said Haynes.
"She squeezed my hand so I know she hears me," said Haynes.
Laura Hennum, a spokeswoman for Enloe Medical Center, said one of the biggest challenges for the hospital was helping family members find one another, as passengers were taken to several hospitals.
"We were getting a huge volume of calls from distressed family members trying to find their loved ones," she said.
Ten victims were at the hospital Monday. Three in critical condition, four in fair condition and three in good condition.



-- Edited by SJCALSBM3 at 04:17, 2008-10-07

Very sad news indeed.  My heart goes out to those families who lost their love ones.  I wonder if I know anyone in that bus.

I did some searching and I dont know anyone in that bus.  Most of the people in that bus was Lao Hmong.

-- Edited by SeeHarHed at 05:46, 2008-10-07

Anonymous wrote:

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sjalbnatyeabcd333, you need to remove Jessica Alba photo. You're NO Jessica Alba !!!

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Pit hua mae meung baw loong e hahee now that i use the pix. buck nah mah.. mind your own business.

Anonymous wrote:

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sjalbnatyeabcd333, you need to remove Jessica Alba photo. You're NO Jessica Alba !!!

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when are you going to send me your ugly black arse mother picture so I could use your mother's picture instead of JA? you're fuking numwit

I think i know who you are, i know that you've posted this question on my white board....

SJCALSBM3 wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

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sjalbnatyeabcd333, you need to remove Jessica Alba photo. You're NO Jessica Alba !!!
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fukking internet cafe user

 

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I feel you lol 

 

I think you guys should take it out on each other posting.  Due respect to those families whom lost their love ones.  This blog should be about the deadly accident, NOT about you guys avartar picture.  C'mon guys, we all grown up in here.  Let's stop acting like 10 years old and get along.