Bus same model as ski crash
Abus accident which left 17 people injured after the vehicle crashed in Manawatu yesterday was the same model involved in a fatal accident on Mt Ruapehu on Saturday.
The Herald can also reveal the 1991 Mitsubishi Fuso bus that crashed off the road into a ditch had failed its warrant of fitness checks eight times since 2006 — most recently in 2013, according to vehicle records.
The crash involved a group of iwi who had travelled to Parliament.
State Highway 1 was temporarily closed from 4.45pm to 6pm while the bus was recovered from the ditch.
Police said 19 people were on board the bus at the time of the crash — despite initial reports indicating there were 28 people on board.
“Six people were taken to Palmerston North Hospital with moderate injuries.
“The remaining 13 people were taken to Whanganui Hospital with
minor injuries,” a spokesperson said.
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Team (CVST) was investigating the cause of the crash.
A police spokesman said the bus crashed into a ditch yesterday on the intersection of SH1 and Rowe Rd in Rongotea at 2.47pm.
The bus that crashed on the Turoa mountain road at the weekend, killing 11-year-old West Auckland girl Hannah Francis, was also a Mitsubishi Fuso.
The company which operated the Fuso, Ruapehu Alpine Lifts, has taken another Fuso off the road since the accident. Passengers on board the Turoa bus said that the vehicle’s brakes failed to slow the bus as it sped downhill.
The buses, which have wide door openings, are popular with charter operators and tour firms. Unlike cars on the road, there is no requirement for the buses to be fitted with seatbelts.