The deadly crash of a Farmingdale High School bus in 2023 was the result of underinflated and damaged tires, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded in a final report on the accident released Thursday, July 24.
The report also found that only one passenger was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.
The crash occurred shortly after 1 p.m. on Sept. 21, 2023, on Interstate 84 in Wawayanda, in Orange County.
The coach was occupied by a 59-year-old driver, 40 high school students, and 3 adult chaperones, according to the report. The passengers were headed to Pine Forest for band camp.
Two adult chaperones, band director Gina Pellettiere and chaperone Beatrice Ferrari, were ejected and fatally injured. The driver was ejected and seriously injured, 14 other occupants sustained serious injuries, and 27 had minor injuries.
The report said a post-crash tire examination revealed that the motorcoach’s steer axle tires showed evidence of prolonged operation in an underinflated condition, and that the left steer axle tire also showed evidence of pre-crash impact damage along its outboard shoulder, which caused the blowout.
The report said that the one passenger who was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash was a student who sustained minor injuries.
“The other five occupants in this area, including the driver, were ejected and sustained fatal or serious injuries,” the report said. “Had the occupants been using their lap/shoulder belts, they would not have been ejected, reducing their level of injury.”
A state law, which took effect in April, requires charter buses to be equipped with seatbelts and mandates their use.
The report also listed recommendations for future bussing scenarios, including periodic tire pressure gauge checks and ensuring all passengers wear seatbelts.
“Educational institutions and other organizations that use motorcoach transportation have a duty to ensure passenger safety,” it said.
The report said schools can increase seat belt use by making students and adult chaperones aware of state seat belt laws and implementing their own mandatory seat belt use policies.
The Farmingdale School District held a special street renaming ceremony on Oct. 8, 2024, to honor Pellettiere and Ferrari.
“The impact that they have left behind has shaped the lives of thousands, and it is for this reason that we join here to commemorate the lives of our two angels,” Farmingdale Superintendent Paul Defendini said.
