City bus collides with car
A city bus was involved in a head-on collision on the Providence access road in front of Forest Village Apartments near Green Meadows on Friday morning.
The Columbia Fire Department and two ambulances responded for the extrication crash shortly after 7:30 a.m. CFD Battalion Chief Garry Warren Jr. was first on scene and found the city bus and sedan upright, blocking the roadway.
The driver of the Chrysler Concorde sedan, whose name has not yet been released, was pinned in his car. Firefighters used several Jaws of Life to remove the entire roof of the vehicle. Crews then had to roll the dashboard forward, again using mechanical equipment, to free his legs, Warren said.
According to a CFD news release, eight firefighters worked to extricate the patient, which took less than 15 minutes.
Extrication can pose several dangers to firefighters, including exposure to broken glass and pieces of sharp metal, Warren said.
Warren also said the details of how the crash happened are still unclear but the accident is under investigation. Metro Transit is also conducting an investigation.
According to the news release, 17 passengers were on the bus at the time of the crash but none reported any injuries at the scene. The bus driver, Willard Hambleton, was also uninjured.