NTSB meets to determine probable cause of bus crash that killed 7 tourists on Arizona highway

NTSB meets on bus crash that killed 7 in Arizona

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — National Transportation Safety Board officials were scheduled to meet Tuesday morning to determine what caused a tour bus crash last year that killed seven on a rural Arizona highway.

The charter bus was carrying a group of Chinese tourists on a return trip to Las Vegas from the Grand Canyon on Jan. 30, 2009, when it crashed on U.S. 93 near Hoover Dam.

Arizona authorities said the driver veered onto the right shoulder and overcorrected, crossing a desert median and overturning. The bus rolled at least once — ejecting most of its passengers out of the windows — before coming to rest on its side.

Federal investigators have said the bus driver was attempting to fix a problem with his door while driving into the sun before the bus crashed.

The tour guide and six Chinese tourists were killed. Ten others were injured, including the driver who worked for the carrier, D.W. Tour & Charter of San Gabriel, Calif.

The tourists had flown from Shanghai to San Francisco before traveling to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon.

The NTSB will also consider proposed safety recommendations at the public meeting in Washington, D.C.

The board plans to release a summary of its findings following the meeting, but the entire report won’t be available for several weeks.

Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman Harold Sanders said the findings will be a “critical component” in determining whether to file charges on the state level.