A Columbia bus crash sent 10 people to the hospital. Now a passenger is suing city, driver

A COMET bus rolled backwards into an embankment, injuring 10 people last July. Now, one of the passengers on the bus during the crash is suing the bus system and the city of Columbia.

Police arrived at the scene around 9 a.m. the morning of July 25 to find a COMET bus hanging off an embankment near the intersection of Colonial Drive and Surrey Street. At the time, 10 people including the driver were taken to an area hospital.

Law enforcement in July did not say what specifically caused the accident.

A passenger on the bus at the time, Eric Dreher, is now suing Columbia, the COMET bus system and the bus driver, Sophia Alexander, according to court records filed March 14. Dreher is being represented by Columbia’s Burriss and Ridgeway lawfirm.

Dreher’s lawsuit says he suffered serious and permanent injuries from the crash and that the crash happened because of negligence from the bus driver as well as the city and the COMET.

The bus driver, Alexander, improperly parked the bus on Surrey Street to inspect a warning light, the suit alleges. While Alexander was checking the light, the bus began to roll backwards, down the embankment, and struck a tree, the suit claims.

Dreher’s suit also states that the bus driver drove at an improper speed, followed other vehicles too closely, failed to keep a proper lookout, failed to sound the horn and drove under “impaired and fatigued” conditions.

The suit also states that the COMET and the city were negligent in hiring and training the driver.

Dreher is seeking a jury trial and damages.

When asked if the driver is still employed with the COMET, a spokesperson for the COMET referred The State to RATP Dev USA, the contracted company that operates buses for the COMET. The State was not able to reach a representative for RATP Dev USA prior to publication.