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A bit of a scare in Seattle

Not a good day to be riding a bus. From Seattle station KOMO:

Charter bus dangles over I-5 after icy accident
Two charter buses packed with passengers collided while sliding down a slippery hill in Seattle, and one is now hanging precariously over a 30-foot wall beside Interstate 5.

About 60 passengers were aboard the two buses, which crashed through a metal railing and screeched to a stop seconds before toppling onto the freeway below.

The bizarre accident happened at about 12:30 p.m. as the buses nosed down a hill on East Thomas Street approaching Melrose Avenue East in central Seattle.

Witnesses said the rear bus was heading down the hill too fast for the slippery conditions, and slammed into the back of the front bus.

Both buses slid across Melrose Avenue, which borders a wall above northbound I-5, and kept going through a metal barrier at the top of the wall.

By the time the first bus stopped, its front end and front wheels were dangling suspended about 30 feet above the freeway.

I bet the commute home is going to be wonderful, what with all the gapers slowing down to look. I-5 already is the pits during rush hour, this will just make it a lot worse. Reading the comments left by KOMO viewers, I came across this one which indicates that it could have been much much worse:

The real heroes are the witnesses who stopped the third bus from going down the same hill. They saved countless lives if it too slid down and rammed the back of the first bus as that would have likely sent it over the edge onto the freeway.

"A third charter bus with the group did not go down the hill after witnesses at the scene ran out and warned the driver to stop, and its passengers were all safe.

Witnesses said the third bus probably would have pushed the first one over the wall if it had come down the hill and lost control, as the first two did."

Posted by DaveH at December 19, 2008 4:08 PM