8 Injured When Car Slams Into MTA Bus In Red Hook, Brooklyn
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Eight people were injured Wednesday evening when a car slammed into a Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus in Red Hook, Brooklyn -- sending the bus plowing into several parked cars and a building.
As CBS 2's Weijia Jiang reported, exclusive surveillance video captured the moment the routine bus ride turned into a struggle for safety.
"It happened so fast," said passenger Jamie Balzano, one of the eight people injured. "I was just trying to hold on, you know, so I don't fall."
Around 5:50 p.m., the car hit the front of a B61 bus traveling down Dwight Street at Coffey Street in Brooklyn, according to the MTA.
The bus struck several parked autos, jumped the curb and struck a nearby building, the MTA said.
"It was a domino effect – all the way down. All the way down to the van," said witness Bob Seetin.
Seetin said he saw what triggered the accident.
"That black Camry was coming on Coffey Street, and it broke the stop sign. It went past the stop sign without stopping. And the bus is coming this way, and the two cars collided and sent the bus into the sidewalk," Seetin said.
The bus also took down two trees before it smashed into the building, where Michael DiMarino runs a manufacturing company.
"We didn't know if one of our machines malfunctioned, or we got hit with lightning," said DiMarino, owner of Linda Tool. "It felt like an earthquake. It was tremendous."
The MTA said the bus driver, a 22-year veteran, was rushed to the hospital. So was the driver of the Camry.
Police also said three bus passengers were taken to Lutheran Medical Center, where they were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
A few other patients were also taken to area hospitals with minor injuries, the FDNY told 1010 WINS.
As of late Wednesday night, crews were in the process of towing the bus away. Afterward, investigators with the Department of Buildings will determine whether the building the bus struck is structurally sound.
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