Tragedy on the highway

News about the fiery Interstate 5 crash that killed 10 last Thursday (April 10), including the drivers of a FedEx truck and a bus driver, made national headlines. The story is heartbreaking—in addition to the drivers, the crash claimed the lives of five students and three chaperones who were onboard the bus en route from Southern California to visit Humboldt State University.

The bus carried 40 high school students, all from low-income families or among the first generation to attend college. One witness report alleged that the FedEx truck was on fire before it crossed the median and collided with the bus. That claim has since been refuted.

Both bus driver Talalelei Lealao-Taiao and Tim Evans, who was behind the wheel of the FedEx truck, have clean DMV records, according to a Sacramento Bee report. The identities of some of the passengers as well as the drivers’ toxicity reports are still forthcoming.