Passengers Hurt After Shuttle Bus Rolls Over Near DIA
DENVER (CBS4) - Police had to close off part of Pena Boulevard Monday afternoon when a shuttle bus carrying passengers from Denver International Airport lost control and overturned on the shoulder of the road.
Everyone on board was sent to the hospital with varying injuries.
"We can tell that there was a loss of control but what we don't know is why," said Sgt. Mike Farr with Denver Police.
The vehicle for The Parking Spot airport shuttle service lost control on the outbound lanes of Pena Blvd. near the Jackson Gap exit.
There were more than a dozen people traveling on the bus along with the driver. All of them were transported from the scene to receive medical attention.
"Everybody did go to the hospital," explained Farr. "There is varying levels of injury from what we would call a serious injury with some reported possible fractures."
Farr is the day shift supervisor for the Traffic Investigations Unit. He told CBS4 he doesn't believe any of the injuries are life threatening.
Police determined that there were no other cars involved and noticed skid marks on the road leading up to where the shuttle came to a stop. Early into their investigation, they haven't ruled out mechanical issues or driver error as possible causes.
The traffic unit closed off the ramp leading onto the outbound lanes in the late afternoon to preserve the scene, but cars were able to use that path again before 3:30 p.m. The shuttle was removed from the scene before 4 p.m.
Some patients were sent to University Hospital while others were treated at Denver Health. No update on their condition was available.
"We know this is a busy part of the day for the airport," Farr said. "We're going to take that balance of protecting our scene versus getting the transportation system operating as normally as possible as quickly as possible."
Shawn Chitnis reports for CBS4 News at 10 on weekends and CBS4 News at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. throughout the week. Email him story ideas at smchitnis@cbs.com and connect with him on Twitter or Facebook.
