The National Transportation Safety Board is slated to convene Tuesday to determine the probable cause of 2016's deadly Palm Springs freeway crash that killed 13 people aboard a tour bus on Interstate 10.
The early morning crash killed the bus driver, along with 12 passengers riding near the front of the bus that slammed into the rear of a big rig on westbound Interstate 10, west of North Indian Canyon Drive at 76 mph, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Since its investigation into the Oct. 23, 2016, crash began last fall, NTSB investigators have not made any public statements regarding what they believe caused the wreck. The NTSB board is scheduled to meet in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday -- at 6:30 a.m. Pacific time. The meeting will be livestreamed at http://ntsb.capitolconnection.org/ .
The Riverside County District Attorney's Office has charged the big rig's driver, Bruce Guilford, 51, of Covington, Georgia, with vehicular manslaughter and reckless driving. Guilford was arrested in his home state two weeks ago and is awaiting extradition to California to face more than 40 felony and misdemeanor counts.
Investigators allege that Guilford logged too many driving hours, in violation of federal regulations, causing him to be sleep-deprived on the morning of the crash.
In an arrest warrant declaration, California Highway Patrol Officer Scott Parent alleges Guilford fell asleep behind the wheel, leaving his truck stopped on the freeway for over a minute just prior to the crash. Guilford was on the second of two consecutive round trips from Alabama to California when the crash occurred and falsified his driver logs to hide the amount of hours he'd spent on the road, the document alleges.
Parent said Guilford was "not the party determined to be most at fault for this collision," though falling asleep behind the wheel "was a substantial factor in the deaths of 13 individuals."
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The bus had taken gamblers on a junket to the Red Earth Casino in Thermal, and was en route back to the Los Angeles area when it slammed into the rear of Guilford's truck.
