Five people were killed Friday when the tour bus they were riding in from Niagara Falls to New York City rolled over on the Thruway near Pembroke in Genesee County, according to state police.
A tour bus carrying 54 people lost control in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 90 just before exit 48A at 12:22 p.m. State police said several witnesses saw the bus lose control, enter the median, cross the southern shoulder and overturn.
The crash forced the closing of the Thruway in both directions. The eastbound lanes, which had remained closed into the evening, were reopened around 8:30 p.m., about eight hours after the crash. The westbound lanes reopened just after 5 p.m.
Rescue workers on the scene of a bus rollover crash on the New York State Thruway near the Pembroke exit on Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
Police have not yet released the names of those who died, but said an earlier report that one of the deceased was a child was incorrect.
All five who died perished at the scene. The number of injured was not quantified by police, though Major Andre J. Ray said early Friday evening that while many are still hospitalized, there were no other patients in a “life-threatening status.”
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The bus was operated by M&Y Tour Inc. out of Staten Island, Ray said.
A tow truck removes a bus from the scene of a fatal crash on the New York State Thruway on Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
Harry Scull Jr./Buffalo News
Passengers on the bus ranged from ages 1 to 74.
Investigators have ruled out mechanical failure and impairment or intoxication of the driver as causes of the crash.
Ray said the driver became “distracted,” but declined to specify how, other than to say it was not by another vehicle.
Ray said he was unaware of any serious physical injuries to any children who were on the bus, though children were transported to hospitals.
“The bus did roll,” Trooper James O’Callaghan said during a news conference Friday afternoon. “There were multiple ejections. There were multiple people trapped and there’s multiple fatalities.”
Earlier Friday afternoon, O’Callaghan had said a child was believed to be among those killed. Later in the day, Ray said no children had died in the crash and that the five killed were adults.
The crash left eight to 10 people in critical condition, patients who were transported via helicopter for medical treatment, said State Sen. George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay, who represents the area of the crash, quoting information he received from the Genesee County manager.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and Rep. Claudia Tenney’s offices reached out to offer assistance, Borello said.
“This is obviously a horrible tragedy, and I pray for the victims and their families,” Borrello said. “Thankfully, we have professional and volunteer first responders from around Western New York, and beyond, that are stepping up to help the victims of the incident.”
The bus was chartered out of New York City and was on its way back there after visiting Niagara Falls, according to state police.
Police said the driver survived the wreck, which did not involve any other vehicles. Investigators spoke to the driver about the accident, O’Callaghan said.
Rescue personnel work the scene of a tour bus that crashed and rolled over on the New York State Thruway near Pembroke, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
“We believe we have a good idea of what happened, of why the bus lost control,” O’Callaghan said. “We just want to make sure all the details are thoroughly vetted.”
O’Callaghan said state police expect to work with the bus company and review the camera footage inside the vehicle.
The National Transportation Safety Board, in coordination with the state police and state Department of Transportation Motor Carrier Compliance Bureau, is sending a “go-team to conduct a safety investigation” into the crash, an agency spokesperson said.
The NTSB team is expected to arrive late Friday evening and on Saturday.
Region’s hospitals respond
The region’s hospitals, including facilities in Buffalo, Batavia and Rochester, reported treating dozens of patients from the bus crash. O’Callaghan said almost every person in the crash had “some sort of cut, bruise or abrasion.”
ECMC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Samuel Cloud and Chief of Emergency Medicine Dr. Jennifer Pugh on Erie County Medical Center’s response and care for patients following Thruway bus rollover on Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
Erie County Medical Center, which is Western New York’s Level 1 Adult Trauma Center, received 24 patients from the crash. As of 4:30 p.m., 20 of those patients were in the Emergency Department receiving care, while two were in the trauma intensive care unit and two patients were in the operating room, said Dr. Jennifer L. Pugh, the hospital’s chief of emergency medicine.
In the operating room, one patient was in surgery for internal injuries, while the other had a “severe extremity injury,” said Dr. Jeffrey J. Brewer, chief of surgery. When asked about those two patients’ recovery prospects, Brewer said he “would expect that they would recover.”
Of the four patients – the two in surgery and the two in the trauma ICU – ECMC spokesperson Peter Cutler said just before 9:30 p.m. that three of them are in stable condition and one is in critical condition.
Pugh said the hospital’s EMS division sent six physicians to the scene to help triage patients.
ECMC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Samuel D. Cloud said the hospital held a mass casualty drill in July, where it prepared for a situation like what unfolded Friday.
ECMC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Samuel D. Cloud tells reporters that the 24 trauma patients sent to the hospital from the tour bus rollover on the Thruway were the most in his 25-year career. More than 50 passengers − several of whom were taken to other hospitals − were treated for injuries following the accident, while officials were still waiting to confirm the number of people who have died.
Still, Cloud hasn’t seen many incidents like this in his 25-year career.
“This is probably the most trauma patients we’ve had from one incident in my career here in Buffalo,” Cloud said.
A Mercy Flight helicopter transports a victim as rescue personnel work the scene of a tour bus that crashed and rolled over on the New York State Thruway near Pembroke, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
At Kaleida, the health system received a total of 20 patients from the accident, said spokesperson Jacqueline A. Bett.
Buffalo General Medical Center received four adult patients, who were all in good condition with one patient already discharged. Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital received 11 adults and two children, with 10 people in good condition and three in fair condition, Bett said. And Oishei Children’s Hospital is treating three children injured in the crash, with two in good condition and one in serious condition.
“While we hope that events like this never occur, our teams regularly practice and participate in mass casualty incident drills to ensure we are ready to care for our community during any type of emergency situation,” Bett said.
All of Mercy Flight’s helicopters responded to the scene and were busy Friday afternoon transporting patients, Executive Vice President Scott Wooton said. Mercy Flight Central in Canandaigua also responded to the scene, added Wooton.
Six patients from the crash are being cared for at University of Rochester Medical Center, the health system said in a statement. Three were transported via air ambulance and three were taken by ground ambulance.
University of Rochester Medical Center said two of the patients are being treated for critical injuries, while the other four, including a pediatric patient, are medically stable.
“As our teams work to provide these patients the best possible care, our hearts are with their families, the first responders and medical professionals who responded to the scene, and all those affected by today’s tragic collision,” University of Rochester Medical Center said.
As of 4 p.m., United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia said it had received two patients, who were treated and released. The Batavia hospital, part of Rochester Regional Health, didn’t expect to receive any additional patients.
ConnectLife, the region’s nonprofit organ procurement organization and community blood bank, just before 2:30 p.m. put out an emergency appeal for blood donations following the accident on the Thruway, which the nonprofit said “left multiple individuals critically injured.”
“Our community is facing a crisis,” said Sarah Diina, senior director of communications and external affairs at ConnectLife, the primary blood provider for ECMC and Kaleida hospitals. “We are urging all eligible donors to act now. Blood is needed immediately to treat patients who are fighting for their lives.”
Rescue personnel work the scene of a tour bus that crashed and rolled over on the New York State Thruway near Pembroke, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
Officials react to ‘tragic’ crash
In a statement on X at 1:30 p.m., Hochul said she had been briefed on the “tragic tour bus accident.”
“My team is coordinating closely with [New York State Police] and local officials who are working to rescue and provide assistance to everyone involved,” Hochul said.
Rescue personnel work the scene of a tour bus that crashed and rolled over on the New York State Thruway near Pembroke, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement that his office is in contact with the NTSB and is closely monitoring the situation.
“I’m heartbroken for all those we’ve lost and all those injured and praying for their families,” Schumer said. “Thank you to our brave first responders on the scene.”
The accident created a huge traffic standstill and a massive emergency response, which left many witnesses to the deadly scene.
Powell Stephens, a Medina resident, was eastbound on the Thruway when he saw a bus on its side ahead of him.
“There was glass all over the road and people’s stuff all over the road,” said Stephens, who drove past the crash scene. “Windows were all shattered. Everyone seemed conscious and OK, but I only saw the scene for about 15 seconds.
A video shared with The Buffalo News by Powell Stephens shows a bus on its side as traffic is stopped around it. Stephens, a Medina resident, was traveling eastbound on the New York State Thruway near the Pembroke exit.
Provided
A photo taken by a Buffalo News photojournalist at the scene showed the tour bus on its side, nearly perpendicular to the roadway, as emergency crew members responded. Not long after 5 p.m., the overturned bus was uprighted by crews at the scene.
A staging area at Indian Falls Fire Hall was set up for those who were less injured in the accident, though that site closed by 3:30 p.m.
Sen. Patrick Gallivan, R-Elma, a former Erie County sheriff and State Police veteran, advised people to avoid the area of the crash so authorities can do their job.
“My thoughts are with the victims and families impacted by the devastating bus accident on the NYS thruway near Pembroke,” Gallivan said in a statement. “Thank you to all of the police, fire, medical personnel and other first responders who rushed to the scene to provide care for the injured and to assist those stuck in traffic.
Sen. Jeremy Cooney, a Rochester Democrat who chairs the Senate’s Transportation Committee, said in a statement: “My heart goes out to the victims of the horrific tour bus crash on the Thruway today. This is an unthinkable tragedy with reports stating that children and families were among those involved. I’ll continue to monitor the situation, I’m praying for the quick recovery of the survivors, and I want to thank our first responders for their quick response to the scene.”
Includes reporting by News Enterprise Editor Dan Higgins.
Rescue personnel work the scene of a tour bus that crashed and rolled over on the New York State Thruway near Pembroke, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025.
Ben Tsujimoto can be reached at btsujimoto@buffnews.com, at (716) 849-6927 or on Twitter at @Tsuj10.
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