Two children were among the dead after the early morning crash in Stafford County, Virginia.
STAFFORD, VA — A charter bus struck six vehicles on Interstate 95 in Stafford County early Friday as traffic slowed near a work zone, killing five people, including two children, and sending more than 40 others to hospitals, authorities said.
The crash has drawn state and federal investigators to one of the East Coast’s busiest highways. Virginia State Police said the bus failed to slow before the chain-reaction wreck near the 146 mile marker, close to Quantico. The National Transportation Safety Board sent a team to examine the crash, and police said charges against the bus driver were pending.
The wreck happened about 2:35 a.m. Friday in the southbound lanes of I-95, about 45 miles south of Washington, D.C. State police said traffic was slowing for an upcoming work zone when the bus hit a Chevrolet Suburban and then struck five other vehicles. All five people who died were in vehicles hit by the bus, not on the bus. “The preliminary investigation indicates that traffic was slowing southbound for an upcoming work zone,” state police said. The crash shut down southbound lanes for hours and left debris, damaged vehicles and emergency crews stretched across the highway before lanes reopened later Friday.
Four of the people killed were from Greenfield, Massachusetts: a 45-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman, a 13-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy, authorities said. They were in an Acura that caught fire after the impact. A fifth person killed, a 25-year-old woman from Worcester, Massachusetts, was in the Suburban that was struck by the bus. Their full names had not been released by police as of Saturday. A statement from the school the children attended identified them by first names as Dmitri and Ecaterina. Authorities said 44 people were taken to hospitals, including the bus driver, and three people had critical injuries.
The bus was operated by E&P Travel Inc., a company based in Kings Mountain, North Carolina, and was traveling overnight from New York City to Charlotte, North Carolina, officials said. Police identified the driver as Jing S. Dong, 48, of Staten Island, New York. Dong was injured and treated at a hospital. State police said investigators were still working to determine the full sequence of the crash, the speed of the bus and whether any mechanical, driver or roadway factors played a role. The company had a satisfactory federal safety rating, but federal investigators were expected to review records tied to the bus, driver and carrier.
The crash brought renewed attention to motorcoach safety, night travel and work-zone traffic on I-95, a major north-south route used by commuters, freight carriers and long-distance buses. The Stafford County crash site is near Quantico and north of Fredericksburg, where overnight road work often narrows lanes or slows traffic. Transportation officials reported long backups after the wreck, with drivers diverted onto nearby routes during the morning commute. Mary Washington Healthcare said it received 19 patients from the crash, including seven at its trauma center in Fredericksburg and 12 at Stafford Hospital. Some patients were released Friday, while others remained under treatment.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a go-team to conduct a safety investigation. Such reviews often examine vehicle condition, driver qualifications, carrier oversight, roadway design, weather, traffic controls and electronic data, when available. State police said the criminal investigation also remained active. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said federal officials were reviewing the driver’s licensing and training records. Duffy said on X that commercial drivers must be able to read road signs, communicate with law enforcement and meet federal rules. Authorities did not announce any charges by Saturday morning.
Survivors described a sudden, violent impact inside the bus. Passenger Rhonda Wright said she was asleep before the crash woke her. She said she heard repeated bangs as the bus hit vehicles and later escaped through an emergency exit window after smoke entered the bus. Another passenger, Wayne Tobin, said riders had been concerned before the crash because the bus appeared to be moving at high speed. Peyton Vogel, a Federal Transit Administration spokesperson who was at the scene, said patients were spread across several hospitals and called the crash “absolutely tragic.”
By Saturday, the southbound lanes of I-95 had reopened, but the investigation remained underway. Police said more information would be released after relatives were notified, evidence was reviewed and investigators completed the next stage of the crash reconstruction.
Author note: Last updated May 30, 2026.