Wedding limo crash 20 dead in upstate NY

[riverwalker]

Source: CBS News

NEW YORK — Police said Sunday that 20 people were killed in a two-vehicle crash on Saturday in upstate New York.

The Albany Times Union reported a limousine was carrying a wedding party when it crashed at the "notorious" intersection of State Route 30 and State Route 30A in the town of Schoharie, about 25 miles west of Albany. Photos from the scene show a white stretch SUV entangled in trees off the side of the road.

State police said the crash was reported just before 2 p.m. on Saturday. The Times Union, citing local officials, reported that the limo sped down a hill and crashed into bystanders at a nearby country store. It's unclear whether any or all the victims were riding in the limo.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/wedding-limo-crash-20-dead-in-horrific-wreck-in-schoharie-new-york-state-police-say/

---

Horrible. Entire wedding party.

[underpants]

1. Good grief. How horrible

[milestogo]

2. I wonder who was driving.

Someone from the wedding or a professional limo driver?

Also wonder if there was alcohol involved.

That is a huge number of casualties...

[Demovictory9]

9. limo crashed into tree. 18 in limo are dead. probably not wearing seat belts

maybe one of those party limos where people sit facing inward.

[SharonAnn]

3. Better title: "Limo kills 20 pedestrians"

[LisaL]

4. That's not in the OP article. Not clear if all the victims were bystanders or some victims were in

the limo. In fact from what is being reported, most victims were in the limo.

[SharonAnn]

5. Ok, "limo kills pedestrians and passengers."

[LisaL]

14. Limo is an object. Not sure why you want to put emphasis on the limo.

It's not like limo went berserk and started killing people.

[dalton99a]

8. Looks like it

[CottonBear]

28. Not LBN. Dead: 17 passengers, 1 driver, 2 bystanders. It was a birthday party.

4 sisters and each of their husbands were in the “limo” headed to a birthday party for one of the sisters.

Tragic. Probably no seatbelts, excessive speed and a dangerous intersection.

[ProfessorGAC]

35. Something Missing There Bear

4 sisters, their husbands and the driver adds up to 9.

A post above says 18 in the limo, which seems hard to believe. That would be more like a bus.

[CottonBear]

37. There were other friends and family in the SUV limo vehicle.

The limo vehicle was an SUV that had been extended and modified to carry many passengers..

[ProfessorGAC]

38. Thing Had To Be Packed!!!

Pictures don't indicate an 18 passenger vehicle!

[Donkees]

6. This report says that 18 of the victims were in limo

A person with knowledge of the investigation into the crash tells The Associated Press that 18 of the victims were in the limousine.

The person was not authorized to discuss the preliminary information publicly and spoke Sunday on the condition of anonymity. The person says that the other two victims were bystanders.

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Multiple-Deaths-Reported-in-Upstate-NY-Wedding-Limo-Crash-Schoharie-495370001.html

[LisaL]

10. The limo still looks mostly intact. Hard to understand why so many people inside of it died.

[Codeine]

11. Presumably no seatbelts.

Roll that thing a few times at high speed and then stop suddenly upon impact with the trees and you’ve got a recipe for massive traumatic injuries to unsecured passengers.

[Donkees]

12. This photo seems to show the 2 vehicles. There's a news conference today at 3 ...

The NTSB Newsroom twitter will update details.

Link to tweet

https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/20-killed-in-Schoharie-limousine-crash-13288015.php#photo-16291205

[Demovictory9]

7. what a tragedy

[Donkees]

13. ''Heavy ntsb presence here at site of accident in Schoharie''

(Albany bureau chief for the NY Times)

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[milestogo]

15. Tourist-spot crash kills 18 in limo, 2 bystanders

SCHOHARIE, N.Y. (AP) -- A crash involving a limousine at an upstate New York tourist spot killed 20 people, officials said Sunday.

A person with knowledge of the investigation told The Associated Press that 18 of the victims were in the limo and two were bystanders. The person was not authorized to discuss the preliminary information publicly and spoke Sunday on the condition of anonymity.

Local officials told the Times Union of Albany that a limo speeding down a hill hit bystanders Saturday afternoon at the Apple Barrel Country Store in Schoharie, about 170 miles (270 kilometers) north of New York City.

State police confirmed Sunday the death toll and said the crash involved two vehicles.

The store is a popular stop for tourists on fall foliage trips.

Customers in the parking lot were killed when they were hit by the limo coming down a hill on state Route 30 at "probably over 60 mph," the store manager, Jessica Kirby, told The New York Times .

In a Facebook post on Saturday, the store thanked emergency responders for their actions. The store posted Sunday that it was open "and could use your hugs."

Witnesses described chaos, with a massive turnout of ambulances and other responders.

"I heard some screaming. It looked serious because people were running back and forth," Bridey Finegan of Schoharie told WNYT NewsChannel 13 .

Authorities didn't release names of victims or other specifics, but state police set up a hotline for family members. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.

An afternoon news conference is planned.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ntsb-probes-fatal-crash-involving-limo-multiple-deaths-143025082.html

[iluvtennis]

16. OMG. Godspeed to the family and friends.

[Donkees]

17. Excerpt about victims:

Lester Andrews, 60, from Rochester, N.Y., said his two stepsons and a daughter-in-law were among three of the people killed in the crash. They were in the limousine. The brothers, Axel Steenburg, 29, and Rich Steenburg, 34, lived upstate, he said. Axel Steenburg’s wife, Amy, also died in the crash, he said. Axel and Amy, who live in Amsterdam, N.Y., and were married over the summer, had rented the limousine, he said. Some local reports said the limousine rental was related a wedding but Mr. Andrews was unsure.

“They rented the limo with some families and I don’t know exactly what they were doing.” Mr. Andrews said in a phone interview. “There’s just a lot of confusion, so many people died.” His said the closest relatives were still awaiting details. “Their mother is looking for some answers,” he said. “She wants to know what happened to her sons.”

Mr. Andrews said he went to Axel’s house on Saturday night to take care of Axel’s bull mastiff. “When we went to pick up the dog, all the people that they were with had all their cars parked in front of their house,” Mr. Andrews said. Investigators, he said, were trying to match the license plates with the victims in the limousine.


https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/07/nyregion/wedding-limo-crash-schoharie-ny.html

[SergeStorms]

18. The limo was a 2001 Ford Excursion.

That's very old for a "stretch" limo. Limos aren't really "stretched", they're dissected, have extended sections of frame welded and bolted in, and then have the sheet metal, wiring, interior etc. added. New York winters, with all the salt spread on the roads, are very tough on steel. An 18 year old Limo, if not maintained correctly, would be an accident waiting to happen.

I have no reason to believe this is what happened, but it's certainly a possibility. These cars are inspected each year in New York, but the inspection is generally for brakes, turn signals, running lights, tires, shoulder harness/seatbelts, glass etc. Frames are not considered part of a NYS inspection, and I'm not sure about seatbelt requirements for Limos. The problem with NYS inspections is that just about everyone "knows someone" at an inspection station who will do a cursory inspection, if any inspection at all, and will slap a sticker on the windshield for a few bucks more than the inspection fee, which is usually about $20, minimum.

Whatever happened, it's about the worst auto accident I can ever remember. What a horrible thing to happen. These people were all excited about an upcoming wedding, and now there's 20 funerals instead. Two innocent bystanders got their tickets punched as well. Very sad.

[LisaL]

19. It wasn't a wedding party as far as I can tell.

[peekaloo]

32. The NBC report last night said it was a birthday party

They were interviewing a woman who was a relative of four of the victims.

[EarthFirst]

20. The frame is most certainly a portion of the annual NYS safety inspection

https://dmv.ny.gov/brochure/new-york-state-vehicle-safetyemissions-inspection-program

I’ve know several folks over the years whose vehicle failed inspection due to frame/chassis deterioration.

[SergeStorms]

22. But like I said....

just about everyone in New York "knows someone" who'll slap a sticker on the car without so much as a cursory look. Especially in these rural areas. I've seen some ridiculously dangerous vehicles on the highway that have a current NYS inspection sticker in the windshield. It takes about a half hour to inspect a vehicle, and for that labor they receive about $20. If caught the vehicle inspection station would lose their NYS inspection privileges, something which brings in an extremely small revenue stream anyway. All they have to say is "it wasn't that way when I inspected it" and little can be done to refute that. It's an inconsistent method to make sure all vehicles are safe and compliant, but many states don't even have that much assurance of vehicular safety.

[LisaL]

26. Apparently one of the victims complained before the crash the limo appeared in bad shape.

"A victim's relative told the Washington Post that "some kind of bus" was supposed to take the group, but it broke down. The group then boarded the stretch limo. According to that relative, one of the victims sent a text before the crash, saying the limo "appeared in terrible condition." "
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/limo-crash-schoharie-family-of-victims-speak-out/

[Rhiannon12866]

21. Albany paper: Four sisters, newlyweds celebrating birthday among 20 killed in Schoharie limo crash

SCHOHARIE, N.Y. — Erin and Shane McGowan were just starting their life together after five months of marriage when they climbed into a limousine to celebrate their friend Amy's 30th birthday. The ride ended in the nation's deadliest transportation disaster since 2009, killing the McGowans and 18 others when the limousine crashed into the parking lot of the Apple Barrel Country Store in Schoharie on Saturday afternoon.

"They just decided to rent a limousine and have fun and not worry about everything," Erin's uncle Anthony Vertucci told the Times Union on Sunday.

"My whole entire family is in complete and utter shock. It's hard and so tragic," said Vertucci, who lives in Saratoga Springs. "We're just talking layers of tragedy. There are so many families affected by this."

Vertucci said the 17 passengers in the limousine included Amy Steenburg, who was celebrating her 30th birthday, Amy's husband Axel, Axel's brother Rich, Amy's three sisters and one of her brothers-in-law. The group of young adults grew up together and all lived in Amsterdam. Two of the couples were newlyweds.


Schoharie is off Exit 23 of I-88, about 23 miles from I-90. Photo: Joyce Bassett / Times Union



Read more: https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Four-sisters-newlyweds-celebrating-birthday-13288852.php

[JI7]

27. so it didn't even crash into an oncoming vehicle that one or both sides weren't paying attention to?

i wonder if the driver had a medical emergency , or maybe meant to hit the brakes but hit the gas instead.

[LisaL]

29. From what has been reported, limo didn't stop at the stop sign, went

out of control into parking lot where it hit a parked car and killed several bystanders.

[JI7]

30. seems like the driver lost control before that at some point

it's also the type of car one should not drive fast so even if it did hit something it shouldn't result in too much damage. but in this case two people standing outside were hit and killed.

[ProfessorGAC]

36. Now The #'s Are Starting To Make Sense

That vehicle didn't look big enough for 18 people.

Thanks for the update.

[raccoon]

23. Was the driver under the influence of something? Nt

[onethatcares]

24. if it's a "Notorius" intersection

why no flashing red lights 1 mile away, 1/2 mile away, 1/4 mile away and 500 ft away?

A large sign that says, "SLOW THE FUCK DOWN' would get the attention of drivers I think.

Damn, it's not like solar chargers are that expensive. The state is going to spend a whole lot more on settlements.

[LisaL]

25. How do you know what was and wasn't there?

Apparently authorities tried to make it safer after previous crashes. So I don't know what exactly that entailed, but how do you know there were no signs?

[AncientGeezer]

33. It's just a stop sign coming down the hill on the 30 side

I know the intersection well

[onethatcares]

34. In all honesty I don't

but it would seem to me the only sensible thing to do would be to put in all manner of safety items, flashing lights, rumble strips, flashing lights, signs that say "20 people died up ahead",

But I'm only some guy in Floriduh that didn't see anything about "making it safer after previous crashes".

[CreekDog]

40. That poster is right, there aren't any warning signs. And you could have easily checked

After a 50mph speed limit sign, there's a stop sign ahead type of sign.

*THAT'S IT* until the intersection/stop sign.

It's as easy to check this via visiting the Google maps website as it is to login to DU and comment about it.

[bullwinkle428]

31. Multiple sections of rumble strips are very effective - I see these used

all of the time on the roads here in Iowa.

Of course, if the driver had a medical emergency or there was a major malfunction on the vehicle, then that wouldn't have made a difference.

[oneshooter]

39. Failed inspection, driver was not licensed for that size vehicle

[Ilsa]

41. I heard that a victim had texted her aunt

(I think) just after they got into the vehicle. She said it made weird sounds, was shoddy, and expressed concern they could get killed in it.