The New Jersey State Police is investigating a two-vehicle crash involving a double-decker Coach bus that resulted in two fatalities and two serious injuries on the New Jersey Turnpike in Woodbridge Township.
According to state police, on Tuesday, August 9, at approximately 6:53 p.m., a Van Hool double-decker Coach bus, occupied by the driver and 22 passengers, was traveling southbound in the left lane of the outer roadway and a Ford F-150 was traveling in the left-center lane next to the bus.
Based on the preliminary investigation, the bus driver lost directional control of the bus in the area of milepost 93.2 and struck the Ford.
Police said that after the impact, the bus went off the road to the right, struck the guardrail, and overturned onto the Thomas Edison Service Area entrance ramp.
According to state police, as a result of the crash, two passengers on the bus sustained fatal injuries, two passengers sustained serious injuries, 14 passengers sustained non-life-threatening injuries, and four passengers sustained no injuries.
Police said that Cheryl Johnson, 59, of Bronx, N.Y. sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased on the scene. Cecilia Kiyanitza, 66, of Woodbury, was airlifted to an area hospital, where she was later pronounced deceased.
The driver of the bus, a 56-year-old male of Westville, sustained serious injuries. No injuries were reported to the driver of the Ford.
According to police, the remaining victims were transported to the following area hospitals: Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, Raritan Bay Medical Center, and Staten Island University Hospital.
The crash remains under investigation.