Community unites to help victims of deadly bus crash – The Vicksburg Post

The sun had barely risen over Warren County Saturday morning when local authorities and residents began helping survivors of a deadly bus crash that killed seven people and injured 36 just after midnight near mile marker 9 on Interstate 20.

On Saturday morning, Warren County Board of Supervisors Chair Kelle Barfield said county officials, the Mississippi Highway Patrol (MHP) and the Baptist Association were working together to provide assistance to passengers. The Merit Health River Region Hospital was converted into a “sequestration site,” Barfield said, where passengers could get food and a place to stay while waiting for further instructions from officials.

On Tuesday morning, Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace said the work was ongoing for more than three days after the accident.

“I haven’t left the hospital since Friday night,” Pace said. “We still have people in the hospital.”

Pace said the community came together to do everything possible to help the victims who were assisted.

“We contacted United Way (of West Central Mississippi) and they paid for the prescription drugs; we contacted Good Shepherd Community Center. They got a car seat and brought it to me for a child who needed a car seat. We had a family that didn’t have anywhere to go. I called a friend who works in a couple of properties and was able to get rooms with compensation.”

In addition to supporting victims’ needs for food, medicine and shelter, Pace said he was grateful for the help of volunteer translators. The 2018 Volvo bus was carrying a total of 43 people — 41 passengers and two drivers — from Atlanta to Dallas, many of whom spoke only Spanish.

“One of the biggest contributions from the community was all the Spanish speakers who volunteered to be translators, because I don’t think many — if any — hospital staff spoke Spanish,” Pace said. “It’s just a big, whole story of how everyone came together.”

Paul Patel, owner and managing partner of Southern Hospitality Services, LLC, offered free lodging at the Courtyard by Marriott to victims who had been released from the hospital or were uninjured but stranded. The free rooms were available while the crash victims waited for transportation out of town. Patel also hosted a free dinner at El Sombrero. On Tuesday, hotel officials said those guests were being relocated to one of the hotel’s locations in Pearl.

City and county officials also expressed their appreciation to rescuers for the work they did in the minutes and hours immediately following Saturday’s accident.

On Saturday morning, Vicksburg Fire Chief Derrick Stamps described the accident as “catastrophic” and said his officers, as well as deputies from the Warren County Sheriff’s Office, officers from the Vicksburg Police Department, firefighters from Warren County Fire Services and other agencies, worked through the night to save as many lives as possible.

“The Vicksburg Fire Department, in conjunction with American Medical Response (AMR), worked tirelessly to transport over 30 patients to the emergency department,” Stamps said.

The crash closed westbound I-20 for much of the early morning hours while crews from multiple agencies treated the injured and extricated passengers trapped in the bus.

“Please continue to pray for these families,” Ward 1 Councilman TJ Mayfield said during Tuesday’s meeting of the Mayors and Councils. “I’m proud of the first responders. I have more respect for what you do. We appreciate you so much.”