The California Highway Patrol is investigating a tour bus crash which claimed five lives and left at least five more seriously injured.
The bus, carrying at least 30 people, was almost sliced in half after it slammed into a sign pole on Highway 99 in Merced County in what CHP called a ‘catastrophic incident.’
Injuries include amputations, head wounds and neck injuries, authorities said.
It is thought just four passengers were able to walk away unharmed.
The bus was traveling from Mexico to Pasco, Washington State and was near a scheduled stop in Livingston when it rammed into the sign post in the early hours of Tuesday.
The bus was also due to call at Sacramento.
California Highway Patrol Officer Moises Onsurez said the bus suddenly veered off the highway, while one passenger said the driver appeared to be attempting to overtake another vehicle moments before impact.
"That vehicle wasn’t allowing him to pass and it kind of ran him off the road," Nakia Coleman told Washington’s Tri-City Herald newspaper.
Officer Onsurez said investigators have not yet had the opportunity to interview the driver due to his injuries.
