State police are investigating after a Greyhound bus and a car crashed Monday night in Alabama near the Tennessee border killing one person and sending all those onboard the bus to area hospitals.
It was not immediately known what caused the two-vehicle wreck which the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency reported took place just after 10 p.m. four miles southeast of Ardmore, in Limestone County along Highway 53.
The small town of Ardmore is about 25 miles northwest of Huntsville and 90 miles south of Nashville.
On Tuesday morning, authorities identified the fatality victim as Sidney C. Benson, 23, of Ardmore.
According to a preliminary investigation by troopers, Benson was driving a 2023 Kia Seltos when the vehicle was struck by a 2020 Greyhound bus driven by Toni E. Lopez, 63, of Old Hickory, Tennessee, a Nashville suburb.
After the initial impact, the bus left the roadway and overturned, the agency reported.
Benson who was not wearing a seatbelt, was pronounced deceased at the scene, troopers said.
Lopez was injured and taken by medical helicopter to a hospital in Huntsville for treatment.
Eight passengers on the bus also suffered injurers and were transported to local hospitals, ALEA reported.
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The conditions of the injured passengers were not immediately known Tuesday, but the sheriff's office for neighboring Madison County − who responded to the crash to assist local agencies − posted on X several of them were taken by medical helicopter to hospitals to be treated for serious injuries.
On Tuesday, ALEA reported identified the eight passengers injured as:
A 56-year-old woman from Louin, Mississippi, a 41-year-old man from Florence, Alabama; a 36-year-old woman from of Tuscaloosa, Alabama; a 36-year-old woman from Moncks Corner S.C; a 54-year-old man from Lowndesboro Alabama; a 37-year-old woman from Myrtle, Mississippi; a 63-year-old man from Nashville and a 23-year old woman whose hometown was not provided by troopers.
Sgt. Jeremy Burkett told USA TODAY ALEA was working to determine what caused the bus to strike the Kia and would release information as soon as it became available.
Huntsville Emergency Medical Services, Inc. spokesperson Don Webster told WAFF-TV the bus was heading from Montgomery to Nashville, with a scheduled stop in Huntsville.
USA TODAY has reached out to Webster.
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On Tuesday morning, authorities were asking motorists to avoid the highway and use an alternative route to reach their destination due to expected traffic delays in that area.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.
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