13 confirmed dead in southern California tour bus crash

Shortly before dawn Sunday morning, a tour bus on Interstate 10 headed to Los Angeles crashed into a tractor trailer truck, killing 13 people and injuring 31.

The bus was on its way back from the Red Earth Casino in Thermal, California, when the accident took place near Palm Springs. "The speed of the bus was so significant that when it hit the back of the big rig, the trailer, the trailer itself entered about 15 feet into the bus," California Highway Patrol Border Division Chief Jim Abele said. Abele said it's unclear at this point how fast the bus, operated by USA Holiday, was traveling. The bus driver was killed and the truck driver sustained injuries, Abele said, adding, "In 35 years, I've never seen a crash with 13 confirmed fatalities."

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