The Chinese Embassy in the United States confirmed Wednesday that one Chinese citizen was killed in a bus crash in the U.S. state of Virginia.
The crash, which took place early Tuesday, also led to injuries of several other Chinese passengers, but none were life-threatening, the embassy said in a statement to Xinhua.
The deceased Chinese citizen is believed to be male, but his identity is still being withheld for privacy reasons.
A team from the Chinese embassy has been dispatched to the scene of the crash to offer consular services and has expressed heartfelt condolences on behalf of Chinese Ambassador Cui Tiankai to the Chinese passengers, according to the statement.
A commercial bus carrying 57 people, including the driver, was traveling from Florida to New York City (NYC) when it crashed on a ramp of the Interstate 95 highway in Prince George County, about 60 kilometers south of Richmond, Virginia's capital, killing two people and injuring dozens. Local police said a significant number of passengers on the bus were Chinese-speaking.
All passengers were sent to local hospitals for treatment or inspection, and by Tuesday evening, about half of the passengers had been released and continued their journey in a bus arranged by the bus company.
The driver, a 40-year-old male named Yui Man Chow, was taken into custody and is charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter. Yui Man Chow took the wheels when the bus made a stop at Rocky Mount to switch drivers.
The bus belongs to Tao's Travel Inc., which obtained its permit and license in Flushing, NYC, but is based in Middleton, state of Massachusetts, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The reason for the crash is under investigation. Heavy fog and speeding may have contributed to the accident.
