LICKING COUNTY, Ohio — The National Transportation Safety Board is in central Ohio for an investigation of the deadly I-70 bus crash in Licking County where six people were killed -- including three teens who were riding a charter bus carrying Tuscarawas Valley students and chaperones.
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy held a briefing on Wednesday afternoon in Columbus to help lay out the timeline of the investigation into the crash and what will be involved in the probe. She began her remarks with a message to the those impacted by the devastating incident.
"I can't imagine what you've gone through since this crash and what challenges lie ahead for you," Homendy said. "Just know that the NTSB will be thinking of you and working diligently on this investigation and even after this investigation to implement our recommendations to prevent it from reoccurring. Our hearts go out to you."
There are 16 NTSB officials currently on site in Ohio, including nine investigators and two family assistance coordinators. Homendy says the NTSB is expected to be on the ground for the next week or so.
Homendy said the NTSB began its first day of investigations with an organizational meeting before going to the crash site to begin its analysis.
TIMELINE OF THE INVESTIGATION
So how long will the investigation last?
Homendy repeated her previous statement from Tuesday, stating that the investigation may take from 12 to 18 months.
The NTSB's preliminary report on the crash is expected to be released in approximately two to three weeks. That report will contain "factual information," but will not have an analysis of the crash.
She said the NTSB will begin by collecting evidence from the scene.
"We’re looking for cameras that may have been in motor vehicles or the motorcoach," she explained on Tuesday. "We’ll want to determine what the sequence of the event was. We’ll want to determine if there was Hazmat in any of the commercial motor vehicles. We’ll want to look at where the injuries were in the motorcoach. There’s a lot that we will gather on scene. Other information that we’ll need as part of the investigation will get collected after we leave, after the on-scene phase of the investigation."
Investigators will also be focused on the environment in which the crash occurred. That includes roadway conditions, roadway design, weather, traffic volumes, and accident histories in the area.
"Our focus is on safety. Our whole mission is based on determining how this happened, why this happened, and to prevent it from reoccurring," Homendy added.
You can watch Homendy's full press conference from Wednesday in the video below:
INITIAL FACTS
The charter bus, which Homendy said had 57 people aboard, was traveling westbound on I-70 near Etna.
Homendy described the five vehicles that were involved in the fiery crash during Wednesday's news conference.
"We had a commercial motor vehicle, then there was a red SUV, then there was the motor coach," she described. "There was another SUV, that group was traveling with the motor coach and then there was the commercial motor vehicle that had the most damage."
The five vehicles approached a traffic queue that resulted from an earlier crash on I-70.
Little is known about the circumstances behind the earlier crash, other than it occurred on I-70 westbound and happened at approximately 7:50 a.m., around one hour before the deadly incident involving the five vehicles.
Homendy added that there has been some "conflicting information about the sequence of events," which is something their investigation will work to determine.
In addition, Homendy also saluted the numerous police and fire departments that responded to the scene shortly after the crash, including several Gahanna officers who were heading to a training event when they learned of the accident and went directly to the scene.
You can watch Homendy's first briefing on Tuesday night below:
MORE COVERAGE FROM 3NEWS...
- 'Our hearts are broken': Tuscarawas Valley Local Schools grieves loss of students, chaperones in I-70 crash
- UPDATES | 6 die in Ohio bus crash on I-70: Victims identified, including 3 students
- Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine addresses deadly bus crash in Ohio during law enforcement anniversary event
- Daughter of bus driver involved in Central Ohio crash that killed 6 speaks to 3News' Lydia Esparra