One dead in pre-game traffic accident
Lawrence Police Captain Steve Zarnowiec and a KSU student/fan talk about the "Cat Tracker," the vehicle involved in the fatality accident. Enlarge video
One man was killed and another man suffered a critical head injury in a pregame, one-vehicle traffic accident involving a bus carrying Kansas State fans Saturday, Lawrence police said.
It happened in the 1700 block of Iowa Street, near a bridge that connects residence halls on Daisy Hill with Kansas University's West Campus, police said.
The purple bus stopped just north of 15th and Iowa streets and didn't appear to be damaged.
Police said they couldn't release the cause of the accident, which happened just after 11:30 a.m., and they did not release the victims' identities other than to say they were not Lawrence residents.
"We have some ideas. But before we put that out ... we certainly want to make sure that we have all of our facts straight," police spokesman Sgt. Paul Fellers said. "We also want to make sure we get all of the family notified."
The privately owned bus, called "The Cat Tracker," follows the K-State football team to road games, said K-State student David Ronsick as he walked by. K-State played KU at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.
"It's like a party bus," said K-State fan Bryant Peterson.
"Fans travel on it," Ronsick said. "They ride on top."
An outdoor porch is attached to the back of the bus, with a ladder leading to a metal platform on top.
Emergency workers "were working on the top deck of the bus," said Peterson, who was in the area shortly after the accident. "It looked like they were loading someone onto a stretcher and they pulled (a victim) down and loaded (a victim) into an ambulance."
One man was seriously injured and taken to University of Kansas Hospital in Kansas City, Kan., by air ambulance, police said. The other victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
On Saturday night, the family of the injured man released a statement through hospital spokesman Dennis McCulloch that said the injured man was being treated for a critical head injury.
"The family understands the public's interest in his condition, but requests prayers and privacy," McCulloch said and added the family did not want to release the man's identity or hometown Saturday night.
At 9 p.m., the Salina Journal posted a story on its Web site that identified the injured man as Chris Orr of Salina, a former sports writer for the newspaper.
At the scene, a fire truck adorned with a K-State wildcat logo on its side was parked directly behind the bus.
Men dressed in firefighter uniforms sat on the side of the truck with their heads in their hands.
"It was traveling behind it," Fellers said. "It was not actually involved."
About a dozen adults, dressed in K-State clothing, comforted one another and filled out paperwork on the side of the road while police investigated the accident.
A man who drove off with the bus afterward said he wasn't on the bus when the accident happened but felt "horrible."
Comments
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Sigmund (anonymous) says…
"It's like a party bus," said K-State fan Bryant Peterson. Sorry your wrong Bryant, its not like a party bus, it is a party bus. At least till the family gets an attorney and sues the owner for everything this idiot owns or ever hopes of owning in this life.
kmcd028 (anonymous) says…
It sounds like the two men were on top of the bus when they went under the bridge connecting the Leid Center to the dorms on the hill.
What an unfortunate accident...it overshadows all the joy that came with the win yesterday.
peachesncream (anonymous) says…
Who cares how it happened, it happened and it is a sad situation , lets all put ourselves in the families shoes for awhile and show them some compassion on this blog site. be kind and think of everyone involved and the fact that they are hurting we do not need to come here and say what WE do not know ... and we sure dont need to ASSUME anything. best thing everyone can do is say a prayer and think of the people who are suffering today and for the rest of thier lives.....our thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved, god bless
Sigmund (anonymous) says…
Shouldn't that be "spelling_king"? Criticizing my spelling and then calling it a "grammar" mistake? Oh well!
My point is and remains the owner/operator of this party bus who allowed fans on top while it is moving through the city streets where one person is killed and another suffered a critical head injury, is unlikely to own a party bus (or much of anything else) after the attorney for the dead man's estate and the attorney for the man with serious head injuries have finished with him.
Yeah I know a run on sentence and redundant, but I couldn't help myself.
creamygnome (anonymous) says…
Now, if someone is dumb enough to ride on top of a vehicle, why should their familes be allowed to sue the owner of the bus? They know what they're getting into. I think it's ridiculous that people can sue others because of their own poor judgement. Can I sue someone because I bought some rollerskates and fell down and broke my leg because I don't know HOW to skate?
linux_chick (anonymous) says…
Watch out, creamy. If you point out the obvious, your comment will be removed.
=====================================
I removed your previous comment, donq. Yours is the only comment I have ever requested removal in nearly two years of posting here.
Taking this window of opportunity to dazzle the board with your incredible wit by mocking the dead make me ashamed to call myself a Lawrence-native. I'm actually questioning the LJW's judgement welcome community comments... ever.
Congrats on making your post #1 to the gutter hall of fame. You, and some others here, *absolutely* deserved removal.
balance71 (anonymous) says…
I, too, requested that comment be removed. I'm amazed at the complete lack of compassion some people have.
emilyhadley (Emily Hadley) says…
Regardless of what happened, it is very sad, and my heart is with all of those who are dealing with this.
This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.
balance71 (anonymous) says…
The callous posts on this thread leave me ashamed. ljworld.com should shut this thread down. Obviously its readers can't handle free speech responsibly.
creamygnome (anonymous) says…
Should there be restrictions on free speech? If someone wants to act like an ass, disrespecting the dead...let them. Just ignore it and read the next post. ljworld.com should NOT shut this thread down if they want to maintain any sort of claim to being a community web site. Just because someone's comments are wrong, doesn't mean they shouldn't be seen. We do have idiots within our community...obviously.
creamygnome (anonymous) says…
Also...There's a difference between pointing out the obvious and being obnoxious.
balance71 (anonymous) says…
Wrong. This is a private site, and they can set whatever restrictions they want. Philosophically, I lean toward the civil libertarian side, but I think freedom comes with responsibility. ljworld.com can set reasonable restrictions on these threads and still legitimately put itself out to be a community site.
bearded_gnome (anonymous) says…
sad, sad story! the party bus driver shouldn't have had that thing in motion w/people outside or on top! driver/operator=at fault.
balance71 (anonymous) says…
I don't think anyone is suggesting the removal of posts with a legitimate point, such as whether the bus should have been moving with people on top. My problem is with the posts that exploit this tragedy through sick humor and contempt for the dead, the injured, and the others involved. How someone can take pleasure from this is beyond me.
jimincountry (anonymous) says…
I read about this tragic accident in the Topeka Cap Journal. Except for inane remarks by inconsiderate bloggers, I really appreciate LJW's coverage and the story.
The Topeka paper falls well short of the Lawrence paper in every respect, including the reader forum/commentary.
The LJW also has easy-to-access references to previous story coverage and gives its readers much better coverage than other papers.
Thanks LJW for a really good community paper. I will continue to follow the story.
Condolences to the families involved!
Hoots (anonymous) says…
Bottom line any number of crazy things went on in this town yesterday. I saw many accidents, people drunk beyond still standing. They had to call paramedics to the Jazzhaus last night because they couldn't get this guy to wake up. Saw people punching people in the face. It was a very crazy day. Unfortunate things like this happen when folks are out to have an over the top good time. I had fun too but took a taxi. I'm waiting to see what really happened. Until then we don't have all the facts...unless someone here has an inside story to tell.
local_support (anonymous) says…
Notice the word anonymous in parenthesis next to your login name. There is your answer regarding callous discusion on this website. Perhaps the LJ World should consider making a name requirement as they do with the restaurant comments. I'm sure we would see a significant change to the discourse found here.
Also the accident was very unfortunate and my thoughts and prayers go out to the family.
chic (anonymous) says…
http://www.saljournal.com/?module=dis...
ks_gal (anonymous) says…
As someone who knows the family of the man who was tragically killed very well, please don't assume you know what happened. Family and friends are grieving and trying to handle this freak accident that occured.
They were trying their best to be safe by taking a chartered bus and not driving themselves. From what I have heard, the individuals were told it was safe and allowed to be on top of the bus. Maybe it wasn't the best judgement call, but that can't be changed now.
I've spoken to the immediate family members and they are doing well considering. I'm sure they would appreciate seeing all of the posts on here that offered up their prayers - they are needed at this time.
Hoots (anonymous) says…
Local_support wrote..............
Posted by local_support (anonymous) on November 19, 2006 at 5:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Notice the word anonymous in parenthesis next to your login name. There is your answer regarding callous discusion on this website. Perhaps the LJ World should consider making a name requirement as they do with the restaurant comments. I'm sure we would see a significant change to the discourse found here.
Also the accident was very unfortunate and my thoughts and prayers go out to the family.
Ah...YEAH...and notice anonymous next to yours and everyone elses as well Dumb a$$!!! go away!!! No soup for you!!!
ks_gal (anonymous) says…
I feel like I need to get one more thing off my chest....
As someone who knows the family well, it did hurt to read some of these posts. While commenting on something so tragic and personal, and involving individuals who are not public figures, tact should be used and people's feelings should be considered.
I do not want to post "inside information" until the police and family feel ready to do so. The man who died was a young man who had just celebrated his one year wedding anniversary and was excitedly expecting his first child - which makes this whole situation even more difficult to comprehend.
My thoughts and prayers to all involved.
Hoots (anonymous) says…
God bless darling. That's just so sad. Gods speed.
elkwc36 (anonymous) says…
My thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends. From one who lost a son in a vehicle accident I know what they are going though. These accidents are unfortunate and the speculation and rumors from others don't help. May Bod be with and bless and comfort them during this time.
itsjustmyopinion (anonymous) says…
This is very tragic. Very, very sad. Just a couple of wonderful folks out having a good time, and to end like that...so suddenley. I so feel for the families.
In regard to the law suite thing, I have mixed emotions. First it is a little soon to be thinking about this, but I would bet that a lawyer has already contacted the families involved. Second, The owner does have some responsibility. If I am not mistaken, double decker busses are illegal in most, if not all, states.
Take todays news that it was found that there is no connection with silicone breast implants and the diseases that the now bankrupt DOW corp. was sued for. So I guess it is best to wait till all the facts are presented, then go from there, but as I said, I would am willing to bet the family has been contacted by lawyers already. That is sad too.
Let the families grieve. Let them have some privacy in this terribly sad time.
jrsmith71 (anonymous) says…
I was in the other lane of traffic right behind the bus when the accident happened. I was taking my 7 year old son to the game and we both witnessed this horrible event. We have said many prayers for the families of the these men. It is an event that I will never forget.
LiLBopper (anonymous) says…
Yes this is very tragic, and my prayers are with the families. However in regards to a law suit. I think this is a little premature and rash. Are these people not adults? Did they make wise decisions? Did they not choose to be atop the bus? And lastly, if the owner of the bus is responsible the authorities will see that just is done.