Greyhound Lines - Notable Incidents and Accidents

Notable Incidents and Accidents

Below is a list of major incidents and accidents on Greyhound buses and buses of subsidiaries in the United States.

• August 4, 1952: In Greyhound's deadliest accident, two Greyhound buses collided head-on along the then-U.S. Route 81 near Waco, Texas. The fuel tanks of both buses then ruptured, bursting into flames. Of the 56 persons aboard both coaches, 28 were killed, including both drivers.
• May 9, 1980: A freight ship collided with the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, resulting in several vehicles including a Greyhound bus falling into Tampa Bay. All 26 people on the bus perished, along with nine others. This is the largest loss of life on a single Greyhound coach to date.
• October 3, 2001: At approximately 4:15 a.m. local time, a passenger, Damir Igric assaulted the driver of his bus, attempting to slit his throat, and causing the bus to crash near Manchester, Tennessee, killing Igric and five other passengers and injuring 32 others. Since the incident occurred three weeks after the September 11 terrorist attacks, Greyhound temporarily disabled its entire system as soon as the company learned of the incident for fear that it may have been part of a larger co-ordinated attack. After investigation by the company and the FBI, it was confirmed that Igric had acted alone, and service resumed later that afternoon. After the incident, Greyhound bus stations increased security, though not nearly to the same level as airports or train stations.
• September 30, 2002: Arturo Martinez Tapia assaulted another Greyhound driver near Fresno, California, resulting in two passenger deaths after the bus then rolled off an embankment and crashed. Following this attack, driver shields were installed on most Greyhound buses that now prevent passengers from having direct contact with the driver when the bus is in motion, even if the shield is forced open. On buses without the shield, the seats directly behind the driver are usually off limits to passengers.