A large piece of industrial equipment fell off a tractor-trailer and hit a private charter bus as the two vehicles traveled north along the Major Deegan Expressway in the Bronx Thursday, stranding at least a dozen people in the middle of the highway, according to law enforcement sources and video from Chopper 4.
It wasn't immediately clear how the construction equipment fell off the flatbed. Sources say it collided with the bus. Emergency crews were called to the scene near East 240th Street shortly after 1:30 p.m., bringing traffic to a halt for at least half an hour.
The bus was left with a smashed windshield and mangled metal. One person on board the bus says cellphones, shoes and people went flying through the air when the charter bus was hit.
Chopper 4 over the scene showed at least two dozen people, about half of them firefighters and emergency personnel, standing near the median on the highway, not far from a stalled Academy Bus.
The passengers boarded an FDNY bus, which brought them down the road to buy some food, relax and settle their nerves.
Academy Bus said it was brought in another bus to take passengers to their destination. The company says it's also working with police to investigate what happened.
The crash scene was cleared and traffic was moving again by late afternoon.
