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One person died and dozens of others were injured, at least five critically, after a bus carrying a high school marching band from Long Island crashed on a New York highway and went down an embankment on Thursday afternoon, the authorities said.
The bus, carrying students from Farmingdale High School, was one of six coach buses traveling to an annual marching band camp in Pennsylvania, according to a spokeswoman for the Farmingdale School District.
It went off the road on a section of I-84 in the town of Wawayanda, in Orange County, a spokesman for the Slate Hill Fire Department said. Details about what caused the accident were not immediately available.
Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York confirmed the fatality in a statement, and said that the New York State Police and employees of the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services were assisting local emergency workers.
“We are grateful for the first responders whose speedy action saved lives and we will continue to support them however necessary,” she said. “Our hearts are with all who are impacted by this horrific situation.”
Five people were hospitalized in critical condition, said Steven M. Neuhaus, the county executive of Orange County.
The blue and white bus was completely turned on its side in the lush embankment after the crash, its windows smashed. Emergency workers rested a ladder up against the bus during the rescue effort, photos and video footage from the scene showed.
Joe Morrissey, a spokesman with the New York State Department of Transportation, said that the bus was operated by Regency Transportation of Nesconset, N.Y. The driver was properly licensed and the bus had passed its most recent inspection, he said.
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