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"Heroic" rescuers sought in fatal bus crash on George Washington Parkway

Posted at 12:22 PM, Jun 15, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-15 18:19:45-04

One person was killed in a fatal shuttle bus crash outside Washington, D.C. Tuesday, and U.S. Park Police are seeking the people who helped lift the bus back onto its wheels after it rolled over. 

The crash on the George Washington Memorial Parkway, near Stratford Lane in Virginia, involved a passenger car and a mid-sized shuttle bus, police said.

One passenger on the bus died. Thirteen passengers from the bus and the two occupants of the passenger car were transported to area hospitals. Two remain in critical condition and the driver of the bus is unharmed.

The bus was carrying 18 visitors from China, plus the driver.

Police said that the bus was traveling northbound and the car was traveling southbound when the two collided head on. The bus tipped onto its left side and slid off the roadway. The passenger car left the road and came to a stop in a wooded area.

Witnesses have told investigators that several passersby, some of whom may have been members of the military, stopped at the scene and lifted the bus back onto its wheels. Witnesses said these same people administered first aid to the wounded until emergency personnel arrived at the scene.

Park police said they are following leads to try and identify the rescuers.

Police are asking anyone who witnessed the crash or anyone who may have participated in the “heroic act of lifting the bus,” or attending to the wounded, to call U.S. Park Police at 202-610-7500.

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