Bus crash survivors entitled to damages

By DARYL LANG
Collegian Staff Writer

Students hurt in the Nov. 21 bus accident might receive money from the bus company to compensate for their injuries.

Independent investigators are calling all the students who were on the bus trip to identify those hurt in the wreck, said claims representative Linda McCloskey from Crawford & Co. of Altoona. Compared to most accidents, McCloskey said it was a "huge endeavor" to track down the more than 100 injured students and assess their injuries. The insurance adjusters are also trying to schedule one or two meetings for students and their parents to discuss the claims process, McCloskey said.

Those students could be eligible for payments from Blue & White Lines Inc. of Altoona through its insurance company, The Insurance Corporation of New York, said Sharon Bream, secretary and treasurer of Blue & White Lines.

On Monday, Blue & White Lines and its subsidiary, Lincoln Coach Lines, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. President of the companies Dennis R. Long said in a statement the filing will allow the companies to continue providing service while meeting financial obligations.

Bream said the bankruptcy filing will not change the process of paying claims.

An injury settlement usually tries to cover any medical expenses and wages lost due to the accident, said Edward Blanarik, a State College attorney who specializes in civil and criminal litigation. Insurance assessors will try to set a reserve for each student and try to settle the matter for less than the cost of that reserve, Blanarik said.

In addition, Blanarik said many in the accident might try to collect compensation for pain and suffering.

"I would envision that there would be a lot of people looking toward attorneys to help resolve this," Blanarik said.

Pennsylvania State Police at Swiftwater, who are investigating the bus accident, would not offer any new information yesterday on how the investigation is going.

The four-bus accident happened in dense fog on Interstate 80 near White Haven. Two people were killed, Penn State biology student Denise Orndorff and Blue & White Lines bus driver Robert Burge. More than 100 students were hurt in the chain-reaction accident on the way back from a sightseeing day trip to New York City.

Kathleen Cronin (sophomore-industrial engineering) was standing in the back of one of the buses that was hit hardest when the accident occurred.

Cronin said she wasn't hurt seriously, but had to have several X-rays taken at Palmerton Hospital and made two visits to University Health Services to check up on bruises she received.

She said she expects the bus company to cover the costs of the medical visits.

• Accident Coverage