2nd person dies after buses collide in Newark
NEWARK, New Jersey -- A second person has died hours after two New Jersey Transit buses collided at North Broad Street and Raymond Boulevard in Newark Friday morning.
One bus T-boned the other, likely at high speed, around 6 a.m. One of the vehicles was broken nearly in half, and a bus driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
Seventeen other people were hurt, including the other bus driver and 16 passengers. Six remain in critical condition, while the rest have non-life threatening injuries.
PHOTOS: Deadly bus crash in Newark
John del Giorno and NewsCopter 7 above the scene:
The bus driver who died has not been identified, but he was described by the New Jersey Transit Police Department as a longtime employee. The other driver had neck, back and shoulder injuries.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said the cause of the accident is under investigation.
"We have some preliminary(sic) kind of data that says we suspect one of the bus drivers may have gone through a red light," he said. "We are not positive about that, but that is what is being said."
He said the buses involved were a Route 59 bus and a Route 13 bus, which had 17 passengers and a driver on board. The Route 59 bus was empty, except for the driver who was killed.
Traffic in the area was being diverted, and Baraka urged commuters to stay away from the intersection as officials worked to clear the street.
Victims were taken to University Hospital, Beth Israel Medical Center, St. Michael's Hospital and Trinitas Regional Medical Center in Elizabeth.
The Essex County Prosecutor's Office will investigate the crash.
"We are praying for all the folks in the hospital that they get a speedy recovery from this tragic accident," Baraka said.
One witness posted a Facebook Live video to his page:
