One killed, nine others injured in crash started by Metro bus
WILLOWBROOK, CALIF. - A 32-year-old man was killed and a 24-year-old man suffered major injuries on Sunday when a Metro bus slammed into four parked vehicles and caused collateral damage to a group of people at a taco stand in Willowbrook.
Firefighters and paramedics were dispatched to South Alameda Street and East 131st Street at 2:11 a.m., according to Officer Peter Nicholson of the California Highway Patrol.
The bus driver, later identified as Aaron Armstrong, was driving about 25 mph southbound on Alameda Street, south of 130th Street, when he allowed the vehicle to veer to the right and strike four parked vehicles, the CHP reported.
"The impact caused a chain reaction collision between the four vehicles -- Honda Pilot, Ford E-150, Dodge Charger and Chevrolet Silverado," the CHP said.
At the time of the crash, several pedestrians were standing on the sidewalk at a taco stand on the west sidewalk of Alameda Street. One of them -- later identified as 30-year-old Jose S. Hernandez -- was struck by the Ford-E-150, as it was propelled onto the sidewalk.
Hernandez, a resident of Lynwood, was rushed to St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, where he died from his injuries, Nicholson said.
Officials said three other pedestrians on the sidewalk suffered major to moderate injuries, a passenger inside the Ford E-150 suffered major injuries, four passengers in the Honda Pilot suffered moderate to minor injuries and a passenger in the Metro bus sustained minor injuries.
The Metro bus was a Blue Line shuttle bus, Line 864, used at Blue Line stops that are now under construction, Metro's Dave Sotero told City News Service.
"I don't have the status of the bus operator," Sotero said. "I don't think he was injured. The incident is under investigation."