7 News Belize

Bus Turns Over, KHMH Responds To Mass Casualty Event
posted (March 7, 2025)
This morning, dozens of commuters boarded a Central Transit Bus from Ladyville to Belize City as they do every morning. But around 6:30, the bus experienced a blowout and began swerving across the road, suffered a blowout, and ultimately overturned. The passengers fell on top of each other and had to scramble to get out. Their injuries forced many of them to have to lie down on the shoulder of the highway and wait for help.

But the KHMH was ready as soon as they got the alert. Courtney Menzies went to the hospital today and has this story.

30 commuters with varying degrees of injuries were rushed to the KHMH this morning after the Central Transit Bus they were on turned over. Chaos followed the accident - many of the passengers were sitting or lying on the ground, waiting for help to arrive.

One passenger who had to remain at the hospital explained that it all happened so fast.

Ashanti Can, Teacher, Holy Redeemer Primary School
"When we reached at Manatee Lookout, the bump there, we picked up the last set of passengers and the man crossed the bump and from there, he picked up speed and when I say speed, he was speeding very fast because he did it yesterday but today was even faster and when he got to those curves, because there are some very deep curves on that side and he went and he was unable to gain control of the bus again. When I looked up I realized the bus is going so but the tail of the bus where I am isn't going the same direction as the bus. And he began to fishtail and his first aim was into the seawall and for some reason, by the grace of God, we did not go in the water. He swerved around again to the next side of the road and then he swerved again and I guess that's where he got the blow out and from there he landed on the side and the bus just skated into the bushes where the lamppost was and that was it."

"The first thing when I saw that it was aiming towards the sea, I grabbed my kids, my son and my next two kids and I shielded my son a lot so I took most of the impact for him because he's only 5. My first thing was please, please don't let it go in the water because… the water part was the most traumatic part."

"I sat on the side of the road and that was it, I could not move from there, my leg was unable to move, it was starting to go numb and the BERT people said not to move that they would get a stretcher and that's how I came to the hospital, me and my other daughter."

"It's not a cut, it's more like a sprain, that's what the doctors explained to me. The ligaments are sprained so it's like a sprained ankle and I got a burst lip, my face, my eye, I even got some over this side where I'm all banged up and stuff like that."

Once these passengers arrived at the hospital, the KHMH's staff launched into what they call their mass casualty action plan.

Darwin Slusher, RN, Adult ICU/A&E Unit, KHMHA
"With the activation of that action plan then we had to utilize and mobilize our resources for the more critical or seriously ill clients that access the care. So how the plan worked is we'd have one of the senior nurses on duty such as myself who would then tag and triage these patients as they enter to the main gate. And so we identified them as a code red, code yellow, green, code black, which is obvious death of course. So once we have established patients under a specific category then we would set these patients in a particular area of the unit for care."

"Thankfully this morning though, majority of these casualties were considered a green which is stable, minor cuts, lacerations, couple sutures here and there."

"Our clients were able to get an LG 6 for the pain, X-ray department was called out for additional support so we can do full body imaging just to make sure that we clear these patients from any underlying injury not seen to the naked eye."

And while there were media reports of the KHMH being unable to handle the magnitude of patients, Slusher denied these reports and clarified that the process to treat every single patient went smoothly.

Darwin Slusher, RN, Adult ICU/A&E Unit, KHMHA
"This is something that's often rehearsed. We rehearse our action plan for moments like these to ensure that our staff is equipped and everybody knows their key role of their level of support when it comes to mass casualties for example we have a trauma bay, and in that trauma bay houses 5 critical beds. And those beds were made reserve should in the event we had any casualties fall under code red which is our serious ill patients and then we set up team dynamics at each bed, at each site so one nurse will be responsible only for triaging and documenting, a next nurse for starting IVs and giving medication, a next nurse for any additional support that the patient needs and then two doctors to each bed. And so these doctors then one would be ordering the labs for the patients while the other doctor is physically assessing the patients."

"I can assure you this morning that we had the right amount of nurses, support auxiliary staff and doctors who responded to this mass casualty event with efficacy. I also note that maybe one of the hits we might take it we don't have the supplies, well I can assure you that we had the adequate amount of resources, both human and material resources to treat each and every single patient both from the accident and other incoming emergencies to the accident and emergency wing."

In fact, the medical staff on shift were to clock out at 7am, but stayed for the entire morning and then some as they continued to tend to the patients. Even the security guards chipped in when it came to keeping the peace outside the hospital.

Maurice Westby, Senior Supervisor, KHMHA
"The most difficult part would be the family members because remember nobody is begging to be in this hospital. People come here because they need medical attention and some family members get contract, 'your family member was just in a crazy bus accident, they're doing bad, all sorts of things, so you get all the family members rushing in but all people want to know that they're family member is receiving medical service and that's why we, the security officers, the frontline people, the nurses, the doctors, give that assurance."

"We made sure that all family members got a briefing on their families, we liaised with the nurses the doctors, a few of them came down to the main gate, gave the family members a quick little update. We stayed on top of the game this morning and I am so proud of our security staff, nurses and doctors because they really pulled, man, it was crazy this morning at the KHMHA. But as you've noticed, the crowd is gone. This is what happens once we come together and liaise with our people."

And according to the public relations officer, it's times like these that help the KHMH to rebrand and for the wider public to be assured that they will receive the best care possible.

Tylon Tillett, Public Relations Officer, KHMHA
"This is what we are designed and trained to do. We are the only hospital that can respond with the level of care that was required this morning. And the people who benefit from the KHMH are no longer the silent majority. People are using social media to, and if you look at the comments, to positively say their experience at the KHMH as of late especially and so the people that have gotten good care are being very vociferous and we still have the one or two who will say hey, this and that about the KHMH and that's alright, we are at a place where life meets death, where the sick and the healthy come and sometimes the outcomes are not exactly what we hope for, but healthcare is not an exact science but we try our best to make sure that we hold the line whether it is a pandemic or a mass casualty such as this morning."

And while these types of accidents aren't common, Can told us that she constantly feels her life is endangered using the buses - which she needs to do everyday, since she lives in Ladyville.

Ashanti Can, Teacher, Holy Redeemer Primary School
"It's like they're always racing to go where? I don't know because you will still get there. Why put people's lives at risk? It's not the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, not even the sixth time. It's something that they are doing over, competing with the other bus companies for passengers and most times, there are a couple of times that me and them will get into little disputes just because it's like, one, you're packing the people on the bus then on top of that you're going speed with these people on the bus os it's something that is happening every single day that they just speed and they overtake. Like if there's just an open space that they can drive."

And a Facebook post from Daniel Salinas, the owner of the bus line, stated, quote, "My primary concern right now is the well-being of our passengers and crew, and I am are cooperating with the authorities to understand the details of what happened…I ask that those who were affected please reach out to me." End quote.

Police haven't indicated if charges will be brought.

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