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Bus accident investigation continues
MATTOON, Jun 02, 2009 (Herald & Review - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
There are still plenty of questions to answer from the weekend bus accident that left two young men dead after their heads hit an interstate overpass.
But Mattoon Police Chief Dave Griffith said his department is trying its best to complete the investigation thoroughly without jumping to conclusions.
"We're researching and looking into research on that type of bus," Griffith said Monday. "We're not asking whether they did anything wrong. We're taking our time on answering the questions. And we're trying to provide the families with the information we can at this point."
One question involves the clearance height of the overpass bridge at Illinois 16 in Mattoon. The overpass has a clearance height of 13 feet, 11 inches. Mattoon police accident data indicate only inches of clearance for the 13-foot, 6-inch-tall double-decker bus carrying Justin Sleezer of Yorkville and Cameron Chana of Clarendon Hills on Saturday night on a return trip from a boat outing at Lake Shelbyville.
Griffith said he is aware of a recent accident involving the overpass. He said a backhoe on a trailer struck the bridge a few years ago.
Both Chana, a recent Eastern Illinois University graduate, and Sleezer, a friend visiting the area, were reportedly standing on the upper deck of the bus, but some eyewitnesses said others were standing on the open-air deck of the bus, which is owned by a travel company with Lincoln Springs Resort that is affiliated with Graywood Foundation.
Official reports said the passengers were told not to stand up when the chartered bus was headed down the road. Yet, one eyewitness said that warning was not conveyed after a stop before the accident.
There is also a question if a change of the bus route might be a factor in the tragedy. Sources have said the bus was coming back via Illinois 121 from the lake area, but a request for a food stop led to the bus to the Mattoon McDonald's restaurant along Illinois 16.
Right now, Mattoon police investigators are trying to complete a thorough review of post-accident interviews, Griffith said. He said this accident is unique to his experience.
"In my 29 years I've never heard of a person's head hitting the bottom of a bridge while they were traveling down the road," Griffith said.
hmeeker@jg-tc.com|238-6869.
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