Middle TN-Bus Driver Attacked

[TN_Vixen]

Early this morning, a passenger riding on a Greyhound bus slit the drivers throat crashing the bus. Reportedly, 3 people thus far are reported dead, possibly up to 10. All Greyhound service has been suspended nationwide until we get word whether or not this was a terrorist attack.

 

[Simply Me]

We sent our Life Force out there this morning, they reported chaos at the scene. 7 known dead at this time, 30+ injured when I left this morning. Suppose to be flying some of the injured in to us. I heard reports that a box cutter was used to slash the drivers throat? Anyone hear this?

 

[TN_Vixen]

Simply

we haven't gotten a lot of news yet. Still haven't heard the count is up to 7 dead. Are you in Atlanta? No news about a box cutter either.

 

[Simply Me]

Tn, Last report was 7 confirmed dead. I am in Huntsville, Ala. We went on D alert this morning. Supposedly flying them in. Of course information is sketchy, but our flight nurses reported, "bodies everywhere". I left before talking to them again. On the way home, the news was reporting 7 fatalities.
They said the FBI had already been called in.

 

[Svedish_Chef]

Saw it on the news out here in OZ

Didn't make a great deal of sense to me, but thats what happened.

It wasn't a terrorist thing... maybe just a pissed off redneck?

 

[MishkarinaSkye]

I haven't heard anything about this but Man Oh Man...this world is starting to suck royally!

 

[Ice Princess]

CNN is saying 6 to 10 people dead, so there must be some confusion about that just now.

http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/10/03/bus.crash/

 

[TN_Vixen]

damn. This is crazy.

 

[Ice Princess]

I'd have to agree with Svedish_Chef that it doesn't exactly sound like a terrorist attack, but I guess it's good that they are checking that out. Is it my imagination or have there been a lot of Greyhound bus crashes in TN in recent years? Didn't a driver fall asleep at the wheel and cause a horrible crash there just a few months ago?

 

[Simply Me]

Yes, this is crazy. We should know more soon. Who knows if it was another terrorist attack, or just someone pissed off. All I know is that we were told the weapon used was a box cutter, but this could have been wrong. We were also told what Cnn reported, that the man kept asking the time over and over again, then sliced the drivers throat. Either way, however it came about, it seems like things are going nuts right now.

 

[Purple Haze]

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MANCHESTER, Tennessee (CNN) -- Greyhound Lines suspended service for several hours Wednesday after one of its buses crashed in Tennessee when an attacker slit the driver's throat. Ten died in the ensuing crash, authorities said.

The driver, who survived the attack, told doctors that a man cut his throat with "a razor or box cutter," then grabbed the steering wheel, sending the bus careering off an interstate highway.

Greyhound said service was to resume Wednesday at noon CDT (1 p.m. EDT) after the FBI told the company it was safe to continue.

Ten people were killed in the crash in Manchester, said Dana Keeton, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Safety. The man who attacked the bus driver was among the dead, said Steve Deford, the Coffee County 911 director.

Dr. Ralph Bard, a surgeon at the Medical Center of Manchester who treated the bus driver, quoted the driver as saying his attacker had asked several times about the route of the bus.

"The man came up this last time and cut his throat with what he described as either a razor or a box cutter and then he actually grabbed the wheel and forced the bus across the median to the oncoming traffic," Bard quoted the driver as saying.

AUDIO
Witness Carly Rinearson gives her account of the attack and bus crash (Courtesy WTVF)
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The driver told Bard that the man was "5-foot-10 or 5-foot-11 and 150 to 160 pounds." Bard said the driver told him the man was "foreign" and spoke with an accent.

Bard said the driver never lost consciousness. He said the driver was able to climb out of the wrecked bus and go for help. Bard said the driver, a Greyhound veteran from Marietta, Georgia, is in good condition after surgery to treat the laceration on his neck.

A government official said the man was carrying Croatian identification.

Carly Rinearson, a passenger on the bus, said in a phone call to CNN affiliate WTVF that a man kept asking if he could have her seat near the front of the bus. She said he appeared agitated and kept asking what time it was.

Rinearson said when she refused to give up her seat, "He just went up to the bus driver and ... slit his throat. And the bus driver turned the wheel and the bus tipped over."

She did not describe the man further or say what kind of weapon he had.

Rescue workers and police are shown at the scene of an overturned Greyhound bus near Manchester, Tennessee, early Wednesday. Ê

The Knoxville, Tennessee, field office of the FBI sent agents to the scene. They said if there was no apparent violation of federal law, the investigation would be turned back over to state and local authorities.

In Washington, federal officials told CNN they believe the crash to be an isolated incident and not terrorism.

Authorities said the incident occurred at 4:13 a.m. CDT. The bus, running on schedule No. 1115, had been carrying 36 passengers and had originated in Chicago, Illinois, on a trip to Orlando, Florida. The crash occurred on the trip's leg from Louisville, Kentucky, to Atlanta, Georgia, Greyhound said. It had departed Louisville at 1:15 a.m. CDT and was due to arrive in Atlanta at 8 a.m. EDT.

When police arrived, the bus was lying on its side by Interstate 24 after running across the median and then the oncoming lanes. No other vehicles were involved. The accident occurred near the intersection of I-24 and state Highway 41 near mile marker 105, police said.

At the scene said that there were skid marks where the bus veered across the median, ran off the road and turned over.

Victims were taken to local hospitals with some airlifted to hospitals in Nashville to the north and Chattanooga to the south by helicopter. Deford said 32 people had been taken to hospitals.

Kristin Parlsey, the Greyhound representative, said Greyhound had set up a number for families to call -- 800-884-2744

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So how do you get a quote from a man with a throat that's been cut?

 

[TN_Vixen]

Hazie

were his hands cut off? He could've written a message.

 

[Purple Haze]

If that was the case, you'd think that would be included in the story. There's still so little told about this.

I don't like this, not one little bit.

 

[TN_Vixen]

PH, it makes you wonder why he continually asked the time doesn't it? And even if it is an isolated incident, it doesn't mean that there won't be many more incidents like this perpetuated by covert organizations that are against our gov't. It seems entirely plausible to me - if I were in such an organization - that is would be a perfect time to orchestrate random acts of violence. Just because he can't be tied directly to bin Laden doesn't mean that we shouldn't be extremely concerned about this event.

 

[Purple Haze]

What do you do when all the perpetraitors kill themselves? You can't question them. You can't link them to any organization. Bombing the shit out of bin Laden isn't going to stop this kind of stuff from happening. This is sooo fucked.

Superman, where are you?

 

[HARDKOREBJ]

that is a shame

it hasn`t been long since i rode on one.that is pretty close to where i live.that is a very scary thought.now the secerity will tighting up.why should anyone be allowed to care a knife on there any way.they don`t check your bags or nothing like that.lets pray for the family in this matter.

 

[Simply Me]

I agree HCBJ. Whether this was another terrorist attack, or just a random act of violence, people tonight have lost someone they loved. They have already been in my prayers.