OAN Staff Abril Elfi
1:07 PM – Friday, August 22, 2025
“Multiple fatalities” have been reported following a tour bus crash in Pembroke, New York.
New York State Trooper James O’Callaghan told reporters that a tour bus collided with a semi-truck on Interstate 90, resulting in multiple fatalities, injuries, and several people trapped.
At the time of the disaster, there were “50-plus” passengers on board, including children.
O’Callaghan stated that the bus driver survived after the vehicle overturned, shutting down a significant portion of the Thruway. He added that several passengers were trapped, and some were thrown from the bus.
The New York State Thruway is a system of controlled-access toll roads.
The bus was carrying foreign tourists returning from Niagara Falls to New York City, reportedly from countries like China, India, and the Philippines. Translators are being dispatched to the crash site and nearby hospitals to assist those affected, O’Callaghan noted.
The bus overturned near Pembroke, about 25 miles east of Buffalo, and rescue efforts were still underway as of 3 p.m. ET.
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz posted on X to inform residents of major traffic delays, noting that a section of the interstate will remain closed “until further notice due to the serious mass-casualty bus accident in Genesee County, just over the Erie County line.”
Governor Kathy Hochul (D-N.Y.) also released a statement soon after, explaining that she had been briefed on the accident.
She vowed that her team would “rescue and provide assistance to everyone involved.”
Several fire departments, rescue squads, and four Mercy Flight helicopters have been sent to the scene.
Helicopters are preparing to land in the highway median. Additional heavy rescue units have been requested from Clarence, Newstead, Bowmansville, the Town of Batavia, and Leroy to assist with extrication efforts.
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