Driver of Bus Hit by Train Allegedly Ignored Warnings

The driver of a Southern California Rapid Transit District bus apparently ignored flashing warning lights, signal bells and the horn of an approaching locomotive when he turned into the path of the freight train that struck the bus, Compton police said Friday.

The driver and two passengers were severely injured and six other passengers received lesser injuries when the Southern Pacific train slammed into the Line 55 bus shortly before 8 p.m. Thursday at Willowbrook Avenue and Greenleaf Boulevard.

Police said driver Dang Ngoc Huynh, 34, of Garden Grove--who was in stable condition with head and internal injuries Friday at Martin Luther King Jr. General Hospital--may be cited for a traffic violation after he recovers.

Leilia Bailey, the RTD’s director of transportation, said district supervisors indicated there was “some controversy” over whether all of the signals were working properly.

Police said witnesses told them that they were.

Sgt. Evelyn Malachi said there was no preliminary indication that Huynh was intoxicated at the time of the accident.

Malachi said one witness told investigators that she had stopped her car in response to the warning signals when the bus, which had been moving south on Willowbrook, turned left on Greenleaf and drove past her and into the path of the northbound train.

Railroad officials said the train was traveling only about 12 m.p.h., but its momentum was so great that it dragged the bus more than 400 feet down the tracks before the engineer could bring the freight to a halt.

Department of Motor Vehicles records show that Huynh was involved in an earlier accident while at the wheel of an RTD bus, on Sept. 9, 1986, about a month after he was hired.

Bailey said her records show that Huynh’s bus struck “some stationary object.” But she had no further details about the incident.

She said records indicate that Huynh was a student driver at the time, carrying passengers on a normal run while under the direct observation of an experienced operator. She said there was no indication that anyone was hurt in that incident.

The most severely injured among the passengers involved in Thursday’s accident was Raymond Samatua, 19, according to hospital officials. He was reported in critical condition at Dominguez Medical Center in Long Beach.

David Lemon, 26, was in stable condition at King Hospital.

The other injured were treated at hospitals and released.