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Road accidents have claimed the lives of many people throughout history. Some accidents are, however, more horrific than others—and some a lot more deadly, too. This is indeed the case with bus accidents, where the lives of multiple people are at risk. Unfortunately, some of these incidents were quite tragic, and in this gallery we pay tribute to those who lost their lives in them.
Click through to discover the deadliest bus accidents in history.
Mother's Day was very different for a number of New Orleans families in 1999. On May 9 of that year, a bus with several elderly women on board crashed on Interstate 610, en route to Casino Magic in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. A total of 22 people died.
The records of bus driver Frank Bedell revealed that he had failed drug tests in the past, and had lost two jobs as a result. In addition, the bus driver was undergoing dialysis and had heart problems. But the National Transportation Safety Board investigation never reached a conclusion, as Bedell died a few months following the accident.
On December 4, 1951, a double-decker bus driven by John Sampson rammed into a company of 52 Royal Marines Cadets. The boys were walking from their barracks in Gillingham to the Chatham Docks, where they were going to see a boxing match.
Seventeen cadets died on the scene, while seven others lost their lives shortly after. The bus driver claimed that he did not see the cadets. Sampson was found guilty of accidental death, fined £20, and was barred from driving for three years. The families of the victims were paid £10,000 in total (which would be over £330,000, or US$405,000, in today's money).
The tragic accident prompted a change in the rules. From then on, columns marching on dark roads at night have carried a red light at the rear.
On May 14, 1988, 67 people (mostly teenagers) were returning from Kings Island, an amusement park near Cincinnati, when their bus collided with a pickup truck. The vehicle was going in the wrong direction on Interstate 71 near Carrollton, Kentucky.
The bus went up in flames, killing 27 people, including the bus driver. An investigation found that the pickup driver, a man named Larry Mahoney, was intoxicated. Mahoney was convicted on 27 counts of second-degree manslaughter and was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
On February 28, 1958, a school bus with 48 children on board was traveling along US 23 when they crashed into a wrecker truck, sliding down an embankment into the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River.
The bus then became submerged in the river, claiming the lives of 26 people, including the driver. Luckily, some 22 children managed to escape to safety. It took 55 hours for the bus to be located by Navy divers and pulled out of the river.
On May 21, 1976, 52 people from Yuba City High School's choir program were on their way to a singing program at Miramonte High in Orinda, California, when their bus crashed, killing 29 (28 of whom were students).
The bus driver had confused the brake warning light with the oil pressure light, and as he pulled over the brakes gave in and the bus fell off an elevated ramp. Memorial services are held annually for the victims of the Yuba City bus disaster.
On September 17, 1963, a bus transporting Mexican agricultural laborers, known as braceros, on their way to work at farms in the Salinas Valley got hit by a freight train at a crossing.
The driver, as well as a further 25 people, only suffered injuries, but 32 of those on board lost their lives. This remains the deadliest road accident in US history, but it wasn't until 2013 that a part of Highway 101 was named the Bracero Memorial Highway.
On May 27, 1975, a coach with 45 elderly women on board was on its way from Thornaby-on-Tees to the Yorkshire Dales, when it crashed on Dibbles Bridge, falling 17 feet (5 meters) and landing upside down in a private garden.
A total of 33 people lost their lives in the accident, which was caused by a brake failure. The owner of the coach company was fined £75 for failure to maintain the vehicle.
On November 23, 2021, a bus full of tourists traveling back to North Macedonia from Istanbul, Turkey, crashed into a highway divider near Bosnek, Bulgaria.
The bus went up in flames, and while some people managed to escape, 45 passengers were not so lucky and died. The cause of the accident was not clear, but human error is suspected.
On February 17, 2016, a bus with over 80 people on board crashed into a cargo truck on its way from Kumasi to Tamale. Faulty brakes caused the head-on collision with a tomato-loaded truck near the town of Kintampo.
The bus was well over its 50-people limit, and in total 71 people lost their lives in the tragic accident.
On November 15, 2008, near the town of Boromo, a bus carrying a large number of workers, who were on their way to the Ivory Coast, collided with a truck.
Both vehicles went up in flames. A total of 96 people were impacted by the accident, 66 of whom lost their lives.
On January 6, 1967, a caravan of buses full of Catholic pilgrims was on its way to a religious feast in the town of Termate in the Cavite province, when disaster struck.
One of the makeshift buses (which are nicknamed "rolling coffins" for having open sides and being unsafe) slammed into the bus in front. Both vehicles ended up tumbling over a massive precipice. The accident claimed the lives of 84 people.
On June 25, 2004, a fuel truck crashed into a bus near the Pakistani border. The explosion engulfed both the truck and bus, as well as other vehicles.
Around 114 people were injured in the accident, and 90 people lost their lives.
On June 8, 1999, a bus with over 100 passengers on board plunged into a lake. It's believed that one of the tires burst, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. A total of 94 fatal victims were recovered by the rescue services.
Then, in August of the same year, a bus en route to the religious site of Uchangidurga, carrying about 100 pilgrims, also crashed. Over 80 people lost their lives in the accident.
On August 18, 1968, heavy rainfall caused by a typhoon flooded the Hida River. Two buses were hit by a landslide and were ragged into the river.
Over 20 bodies were recovered a far stretch downstream from the accident site. In total, the death toll was 102.
Sources: (National Safety Council) (National Transportation Safety Board) (Reuters) (Euronews) (Grunge) (The New York Times)
The deadliest bus accidents in history
From school buses to pilgrim tours
LIFESTYLE Disasters
Road accidents have claimed the lives of many people throughout history. Some accidents are, however, more horrific than others—and some a lot more deadly, too. This is indeed the case with bus accidents, where the lives of multiple people are at risk. Unfortunately, some of these incidents were quite tragic, and in this gallery we pay tribute to those who lost their lives in them.
Click through to discover the deadliest bus accidents in history.