On October 29, 2015, at approximately 9:08 a.m., there was a multiple vehicle accident on Interstate 95 near Daytona Beach which involved a school bus. No students were on the bus at the time of the accident. The accident happened on I-95 near Interstate 4, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The school bus was not owned by Volusia County School District. Alfonso Guardado, 46, was driving the bus to Florida to be exported overseas. As traffic slowed in front of the bus because of an earlier crash, Alfonso Guardado collided into the back of a vehicle driven by Jeffrey Gasaway, 53, of Jacksonville.
After hitting Jeffrey Gasaway’s car, the bus continued to travel on I-95 and collided with a second vehicle. This vehicle was being driven by Thomas Price, 87, of Port Orange.
The bus then went through a guardrail and crossed over into the northbound lanes of I-95. Vehicles in the northbound lanes were not hit. Thomas Price was not injured. Guardado and Gasaway sustained minor injuries and were transported to Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach.
The driver of the bus, Alfonso Guardado, received a ticket for careless driving and for not having a commercial driver’s license according to Florida Highway Patrol.
School buses that are owned by governmental entities and operated by government employees. As such, school buses are subject to Florida’s sovereign immunity laws. Sovereign immunity places caps on what the governmental entity may have to pay. In very serious cases, there are ways around these caps.
We urge all drivers to use caution when traveling at higher speeds on Interstate highways.
If you have been injured in a bus or auto accident, contact Zimmet & Zimmet, Daytona Beach personal injury attorneys.
