An accordion SEPTA bus and a tractor-trailer crashed in Northeast Philadelphia Monday afternoon, leaving the bus jackknifed across a major thoroughfare and several people hurt.
The crash happened on the 7900 block of Oxford Avenue, near Rhawn Street, in the city's Fox Chase neighborhood, about 12:30 p.m. SEPTA officials said based on a preliminary investigation, it appears that the Route 18 bus had just pulled out of the Fox Chase Loop on Oxford Avenue when the crash occurred. Officials said the driver and two passengers were on the bus at the time.
"When I went around I saw the impact and saw how bad the window was busted out and the driver screaming from the bus," said Chris Burgos. "I jumped out and went into the front of the bus to see if everybody was alright. There was an older lady on the floor and a middle-aged woman who was in the middle of the bus. She was on the floor."
All three on-board were taken to Aria Health's Torresdale hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries, officials said. There was no word on any other injuries in the crash about 2 p.m.
Witnesses at the scene of the crash told NBC10's Lauren Mayk that the tractor-trailer, which was carrying heavy construction equipment, had a police escort, but that the crash occurred behind the escort. A police motorcycle could be seen in SkyForce10 video of the crash scene.
The wreck snarled traffic along Oxford Avenue and surrounding streets. Oxford Avenue reopened around 8 p.m. after being closed for hours.
The SEPTA bus blocked all lanes of traffic and wound up on the sidewalk on both sides of the avenue. The front of the truck wound up into the Blooming Artist Studio next to an Allstate insurance agency.
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"I was sitting like right in the middle painting and I heard this terrible crash," said Nora McCloskey, who was inside the Studio at the time of the accident. "I looked up and saw a truck at my window. The worst part was when I came out. A woman was screaming. I was so lucky that it didn't swing over to the right because that's where I was."
The truck appeared to hauling a large piece of construction machinery that became detached during the wreck.
The cause of the wreck remained under investigation Monday.
