Eight inmates and two correctional officers were killed Wednesday morning when their transport bus left the roadway and collided with a moving train in west Texas, officials said.
Five more people — four inmates and one staff member — were injured in the incident outside Penwell and were taken to an Odessa hospital, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said. The vehicle had been traveling on Interstate 20.
Three of the patients were in critical condition, two in serious, the department said.
Video from the scene’s aftermath showed the prison bus on its side, and dozens of emergency vehicles and personnel.
“It’s with a heavy heart that we mourn the loss of those killed and injured this morning in a tragic accident. Their loved ones will be in our thoughts and prayers,” said Brad Livingston, executive director for the Department of Criminal Justice.
None of the train’s crew members were injured, Mark Davis with Union Pacific said, and none of the rail cars derailed.
Two trailer loads carrying packages shipped via UPS were involved in the accident, Andy McGowan, director of UPS public relations said in an email to CNN.
UPS is working with authorities to get the packages delivered as soon as possible.
The bus was traveling from a prison facility in Abilene to one in El Paso, the department said.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it plans to investigate.