Report: Man Trapped Under Greyhound Bus in Downtown D.C.

Any car accident involving a pedestrian has the possibility of resulting in severe personal injury or death. We are talking about a car weighing upwards of 2,000 pounds colliding with a pedestrian with no form of protection whatsoever. When the accident involves a bus that can easily weight 40,000 pounds, the accident can have horrific consequences. According to a recent news report form NBC News, a man was rushed to a level-one trauma center after being trapped underneath a Greyhound bus in downtown Washington, DC.

Authorities have said the 70-year-old man was severely injured when he was hit by the bus and then pinned underneath it for around 20 minutes until first responders could free him and transport him to the hospital. According to witnesses, the man was at the corner of 7^th Street and Massachusetts Avenue, when the bus approached the corner. The bus made contact with the man as it was making a left hand turn, and he managed to get trapped under the rear dual tires of the bus.

At this point, according to a statement the driver made, he was unaware he had hit anyone, but others on the street who saw the accident ran up to the bus and began banging on the door and screaming for the driver to stop. The bus came to a complete stop, and a doctor who happened to be walking by at that time saw the man trapped under the bus and “dove under” the bus. Once under the bus, doctor assessed the man’s condition and stayed with him.

Once first responders arrived on the scene, the fire department Rescue Company used boards on the ground for leverage and hydraulic vehicle hacks to lift the rear tires of the bus off victim, so they could free him from the wreck. After about 20 minutes, the first responders had arrived and freed the man from the bus accident scene and transported him to a local emergency room.

In what police are calling a miracle, the man managed to survive the horrific ordeal, but he has a long way to go in his treatment in recovery, and he is listed in critical but stable condition. At the time of this pedestrian and bus accident, the bus was being used as a shuttle to take people to an American Dental Association conference at the convention center. Following this serious bus accident, police closed off the street to all vehicle traffic, so they could conduct the rescue operation and have accident reconstruction investigators get to work on the scene immediately. This typically involves taking photographs, measurements, weather readings, and making observations as to what was the cause of the accident. It is also important to gather the names and contact information of all witnesses, so they can be interviewed later if need.

Your Boston pedestrian accident attorney will also be able to have his or her private investigator perform a complete investigation as to the cause of the accident, which may be very different from the official reports, as authorities are not necessarily focused on your right to financially recovery following an accident.

If you are injured in an accident in Massachusetts, call Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers for a free and confidential appointment — (617) 777-7777.

Additional Resources:

Pedestrian Rushed to Hospital After Being Struck, Pinned Beneath Greyhound Bus in Downtown D.C., November 4, 2015, NBC News, by News Desk

More Blog Entries:

Pedestrian Dragged Hundreds of Feet in Car Crash – Western Massachusetts, June 13, 2015, Boston Car Accident Attorney Blog