After an investigation that lasted over a year, the NTSB released its findings on Tuesday about the April 10, 2014 crash between a FedEx truck and a bus that killed 10 people on I-5 in north of Sacramento.
The accident occurred when the FedEx truck crossed the median and hit a charter bus full of high school students head on.
The NTSB concluded that the driver of the truck was unresponsive for unknown reasons, which caused him to lose control of the truck and crash. Though the agency blamed the truck driver for the crash in May, many crash factors were ruled out, including driver experience, licensing and training, mechanical factors, weather conditions, and drug and alcohol use. They also said that fatigue or a medical condition were unlikely to have caused the crash. The 32-year-old driver was killed in the crash.
Investigators admitted that neither the truck nor the bus had event data recorders, which prevented them from coming to clear conclusions in their investigation.
The agency strongly recommended increasing safety requirements for motor-coaches. They said that fire-resistant material, emergency lighting and signage, and a second exit could have saved lives. They also say that if the bus driver had provided the passengers with safety information, the accident could have been less deadly.
Sources:
Lake County News
KRCR TV
News 10 Net
CBS This Morning
New York Times