Gloria Estefan Breaks Vertebra in Crash as Truck Hits Band Bus

Singer Gloria Estefan of the group Miami Sound Machine suffered a broken vertebra Tuesday when a truck ran into the band’s bus on a snow-covered highway in the Pocono Mountains, authorities said.

Estefan, five other members of the band and the truck driver were taken to Community Medical Center in Scranton for treatment. The 32-year-old singer was in stable condition, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Estefan was not paralyzed, said Dr. William Pfeifer, who treated her. “At this point, we are looking for her getting everything back,” the trauma surgeon said during a news conference. “She is not paralyzed in any way, shape or form.”

Among those in the hospital were Estefan’s husband, Emilio Estefan Jr., 37, with head and hand injuries, and their 9-year-old son, Nayid, who suffered a neck injury.

The accident occurred on Interstate 380 near Tobyhanna, state police said. The group was headed for Syracuse, N.Y., for a concert scheduled for Tuesday night. The rest of the band had already arrived.

The Estefans met Monday with President Bush at the White House to discuss her anti-drug work. Estefan was nominated for a Grammy in February for best pop vocal performance by a female for the single “Don’t Wanna Lose You.” Her new album, “Cuts Both Ways,” was 26th on the Cashbox magazine pop chart for the week of March 17.