COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- The driver of a truck that crashed into a bus carrying high school band members on Interstate 70 in 2023, killing six and injuring dozens of others, was not paying attention at the time of the crash, according to a final report from the National Transportation Safety Board.
On Nov. 14, 2023, a charter bus carrying 54 people connected to the Tuscarawas Valley Middle-High School band was traveling westbound on I-70 toward Columbus for a performance at the Ohio School Boards Association conference. The collision occurred at about 8:50 a.m., when Jacob McDonald, driving a 2019 Freightliner semi, failed to decelerate as traffic slowed for a crash farther down the highway.
McDonald, 61, struck an SUV in front of him, occupied by a teacher and two parent chaperones, before driving over it and crashing into the rear of the charter bus. The impact sent the bus into another SUV and a commercial truck, totaling five cars involved in the crash, according to a report by the NTSB. The semi caught fire, with the flames spreading to the rear of the charter bus.
Estate of Ta’Kiya Young files federal lawsuit against Blendon Township, police chiefThe NTSB said the probable cause of the crash was McDonald's inattention and listed inadequate strategies to monitor traffic and inform drivers of backups on I-70 as contributing factors.
"We found that salient cues, in the form of slowing traffic in both lanes and illuminated brake lights, were present at the end of the traffic queue to inform the truck driver of the need to slow his vehicle," the NTSB wrote. "The truck driver's lack of evasive action was consistent with being inattentive to the forward roadway, but the reason for his inattention was unknown."
The vehicles that were slowing in front of the truck did not use any emergency braking maneuvers, according to the report.
"The Nissan and the motorcoach were detectable and identifiable as vehicles to the truck driver for at least 7-9 seconds before the collision, based on when the van changed lanes," the report states. "Additionally, traffic in the left lane, which was also slowing, would have been visible to the truck driver."
McDonald did not take any evasive action before the crash, according to the NTSB, which said there was no physical evidence of braking or steering before he crashed into two vehicles at "full highway speed."
The NTSB also found that Ohio's procedures for managing crashes "did not require or advise communication between responders and the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) after minor incidents when vehicles are quickly removed from the travel lane, even if a queue forms, which led to a missed opportunity to warn drivers approaching the traffic queue after the initial incident."
The agency also noted a lack of a driver monitoring system in the truck driven by McDonald, which could have alerted him to pay attention to the roadway.
The emergency exit signage in the motorcoach's windows were inaccurate, the NTSB found, pointing out that instructions said to turn the handle to the right when the handle needed to be turned to the left before the window could be pushed open. Eight of the 14 windows were not damaged in the crash, and all of the windows had emergency exit markings on them, despite not all of them being emergency exits.
The NTSB said citations were issued for improper exit markings.
The agency issued eight new safety recommendations, including that the Federal Highway Administration issue guidance to states on "ensuring that incident classification accounts for all affected roadway conditions and that communications occur between responding and transportation agencies" when traffic queues form, or are likely to form. It also recommended the FHWA revise the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices to reflect the new guidance.
The NTSB also recommends the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration require any commercial vehicle over 10,000 pounds to have systems to detect when drivers are not paying attention and to direct their attention back to driving. It is asking several unions to promote the safety benefits of driver monitoring to their members.
The agency also asked the Tuscarawas Valley Local School District to prioritize selecting operators that require seat belts for all seating positions when picking motorcoach charters.
ODOT has since made upgrades in the area of the crash to warn approaching drivers of traffic backups, according to the NTSB, including new cameras and signage. The Ohio State Highway Patrol also updated standards in May 2024 to help address issues during annual inspections of motorcoaches.
Read the full report below
NTSB I-70 reportDownloadMcDonald faced 26 total charges, including six third-degree felony counts of aggravated vehicular manslaughter, nine fourth-degree felony counts of vehicular assault and 11 first-degree misdemeanor counts of assault. He was found guilty of the lesser offenses on May 16.
Pronounced dead at the scene from the bus were students John Mosley, 18, of Mineral City; Jeffery Worrell, 18, of Bolivar; and Katelyn Owens, 15, of Mineral City. Occupants of the SUV that was driving in front of the semi — Dave Kennat, 56, of Navarre; Kristy Gaynor, 39, of Zoar; and Shannon Wigfield, 45, of Bolivar — were also pronounced dead. Kennat was a teacher, and Gaynor and Wigfield were parents serving as chaperones.
This story includes reporting from Ava Boldizar and Adam Conn.
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