It’s believed there are no Iowans among the casualties after a chartered bus crashed in southern Minnesota on Wednesday afternoon, shortly after leaving a northern Iowa casino. Minnesota state patrol Captain Matt Langer was at the scene.
Langer says the accident happened at 3:09 P.M. as the eastbound bus on Interstate 90, just west of Austin, crossed the center median, entered the westbound lanes and rolled over in the north ditch. He says everyone on the bus was either killed or hurt.
There were 23 people on board. Two people were pronounced dead at the scene while everyone else was transported to hospitals. Injuries ranged from minor to critical. The bus was returning to Rochester, Minnesota, from the Diamond Jo Casino in northern Iowa’s Worth County.
Langer says the cause of the accident is unknown. He says road conditions at the time of the crash were good so weather is not thought to be a contributing factor. The bus was operated by Strain Bus Line Motorcoach Tours out of Rochester. The names of the victims have not been released.
Contributed by John Mickelson, KTLK, Minneapolis