3 die in bus accident on Ark. interstate

The investigation of a deadly passenger bus crash along a rain-soaked highway in eastern Arkansas was hindered by a language barrier between state police and the victims, who were primarily Hispanic, authorities said Monday.

Three people died in the late-night crash — a Mexican citizen and a naturalized U.S. citizen from Mexico who were bus passengers, and the driver of a pickup truck the bus collided with. At least 19 others were hospitalized, including three children. Several were in serious or critical condition.

The Tornado Bus Lines bus crossed the median of Interstate 40 near Forrest City late Sunday and collided with the pickup, then an 18-wheeler. Dozens were taken to hospitals, while others with bruises and scrapes refused treatment, Sadler said.

"The genesis of the crash is on board the bus," State Police spokesman Bill Sadler said. "Of course, the driver, his interview will be very critical."

Spanish speakers were needed as emergency workers responded to the crash and as police interviewed survivors, Sadler said. A Spanish interpreter helped at least one of the hospitals, and the Mexican consulate in Little Rock sent two interpreters.

"Much of the delay is attributed to some communication issues," he said by midmorning Monday.

The bus, heading from Chicago to Dallas, was carrying 47 people, including the driver, state police said. About a dozen victims had to be extricated from the bus.

The driver of the pickup truck, Danny Okurily, 40, of Hot Springs, and bus passenger Raul Lopez, 58, of West Chicago, Ill., were killed, state police said. The name of the third victim was not being released until relatives could be notified.

Mexican consul Andres Chao said the Little Rock consulate would pay for funeral services for the two passengers.

Bus driver Felix Tapia, 28, of Brownsville, Texas, and tractor-trailer driver David Rice, 45, of Mars Hill, N.C., suffered minor injuries.

Tornado Bus spokeswoman Jennifer Rodriguez said the Dallas-based company, which caters primarily to Hispanics, had no previous crashes involving its 75 buses. She declined to provide further details on the crash.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was conducting a compliance review of Tornado Bus and was helping Arkansas authorities investigating the crash, spokesman Duane DeBruyne said. Agency records showed a company performance better than national averages in some respects.

Tornado buses and drivers have been inspected nearly 2,000 times over the past two years, according to agency records. The inspections resulted in Tornado buses being ordered repaired 11.3 percent of the time, and the driver ordered to stop driving — typically for passing the federal limit of 10 hours behind the wheel — 1.2 percent of the time. Both figures were below the national averages of 23.14 percent and 6.8 percent, respectively.

Also, in the past two years, Tornado drivers received 35 moving violations, including 27 for speeding, according to federal records.

Two years ago, the National Transportation Safety Board suggested that median barriers could have stopped or slowed a bus that crossed Interstate 35 in a Feb. 14, 2003, crash at Hewitt, Texas. Seven people were killed in that crash in heavy rain and fog. Five of the victims were aboard the bus.

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Associated Press writers Matt Slagle and David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this report.