Florida: At least eight people were killed and over 40 injured after a bus carrying farmworkers in central Florida overturned on Tuesday after colliding with a pickup truck, according to authorities. The Florida Highway Patrol arrested the driver of the pickup truck on charges of driving under the influence and manslaughter after the deadly crash.
The bus was transporting 53 farmworkers at about 6:40 a.m. when it collided with a truck in Marion County, about 80 miles north of Orlando, the Florida Highway Patrol said. Authorities say the bus swerved off a straight but somewhat hilly two-lane road that passes through farms. It crashed through a fence and ended up on its side in a field. The driver of the pickup was also injured and taken to the hospital, FHP's Lt Patrick Riordan said.
The workers were being transported to a farm that harvested watermelons. Photos taken at the scene show the bus lying on its side with both its emergency rear door and top hatch open. “We will be closed today out of respect to the losses and injuries endured early this morning in the accident that took place to the Olvera Trucking Harvesting Corp," said Cannon Farms, where the workers were going to, on Facebook.
Pickup truck driver arrested
Bryan Maclean Howard, who was driving the pickup truck, was arrested and charged with eight counts of DUI-manslaughter, according to the FHP. Troopers say Howard was driving the 2001 Ford Ranger that crossed into the centre line, sideswiping the bus and causing it to veer off the road. It was not immediately known if Howard had an attorney.
It wasn't immediately clear if the workers who were on the bus were migrants. The Labor Department recently announced new seat belt requirements for employer vehicles used for farmworkers on temporary visas, among other worker protections that will take effect from June 28.
Andres Sequra, a director of mission and ministry for AdventHealth hospitals, told reporters that the injured workers who could be visited by chaplains "were in good spirits for what they have been through". “We were able to provide support, presence, prayer when it was asked of us,” he said.
Vehicle crashes are leading cause of farmworker deaths
Federal statistics show that vehicle crashes were the leading cause of job-related deaths among farmworkers in 2022, the latest year available. They accounted for 81 of 171 fatalities. Florida farms employ more H-2A workers than any other state, about 50,000 a year, according to the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association. The H-2A program allows US employers or agents who meet certain regulatory requirements to bring foreign nationals into the country to fill temporary agricultural jobs.
Authorities in several states have been pushing for greater regulations for the safety of farmworkers, who are overwhelmingly migrants. State law requires seatbelts for farmworker transport using smaller vehicles, weighing less than 10,000 pounds. However, it also was not immediately known if the bus had seat belts.
(with inputs from AP)
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