A LONG-DISTANCE bus driver was accused of causing two deaths in a traffic accident last year on Jihe Expressway at a trial in Bao an District on Tuesday, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported yesterday.
Xie Yunhui faced criminal charges of causing traffic deaths when his bus rammed through the freeway divider and crashed into Zhou Haidong s van near the Fumin tollgate, according to Bao an District Procuratorate. Zhou Haidong, in his 30s, and a woman passenger, Pan Yuqin, in her 20s, died in the accident.
Xie had swerved to avoid a 20-ton steel roll left on the freeway after another car accident the same afternoon, resulting in the head-on collision with the van, according to earlier media reports. Xie suffered head injuries and three bus passengers received minor injuries in the crash.
Three 20-ton steel rolls fell off a container truck which overturned when the driver tried to avoid a two-vehicle pileup earlier that afternoon. The container truck and the other two cars were removed from the freeway shortly after traffic police attended that accident, but the steel rolls weren t removed until three hours later.
Xie s bus hit one of the steel rolls as it was being removed from the freeway by a transport company. The bus lost control and rammed into Zhou s van.
Prosecutors said that Xie was aware of the steel roll when the bus was 40 meters away, but he failed to slow down. Based on an investigation by police, Xie should be held wholly responsible for the deaths, the prosecutors said at the hearing.
Xie denied that he should bear full responsibility for the accident. There were no effective warnings placed on the freeway to warn drivers about the steel rolls, as required by regulations, Xie told the court.
The Daily said a sign was placed about 10 meters from the steel rolls by traffic police who were called to attend the early accident.
Xie said the expressway management company should also bear part of the responsibility.
Zhou and Pan s families also blamed the freeway management company and traffic police for the fatal accident.
The Daily said they didn t file a civil complaint against Xie. Why weren t the steel rolls removed until three hours after the accident? questioned Zhou Litai, a lawyer representing Zhou Haidong.
Xie was arrested Nov. 26, three days after the accident. He has paid 210,000 yuan (US$31,350) in compensation to the victims families.
The trial continues.
Separately, Zhou Haidong s family has taken the traffic police and the freeway management company to court, seeking compensation of nearly 860,000 yuan. (SD News)
