Horrifying video and photos show victims being carried out of the twisted wreckage on stretchers after several witnesses say
the duck vehicle’s driver veered out of its lane along the Aurora Bridge late Thursday morning.
Some have suggested that it was due to a mechanical issue with the vehicle's wheel while authorities have stressed that their investigation has only just begun.

DRIVER SERIOUSLY INJURED IN 2-VEHICLE CRASH INVOLVING BUS CARRYING SPECIAL NEEDS ADULTS IN NEW YORK
"It's too early to determine a cause to this accident," Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O'Toole said at an evening press conference.

Four Dead After Ride the Ducks Vehicle Collides With Charter Bus on Seattle Highway
NY Daily News


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The city's mayor said the tour company's owner has voluntarily removed the amphibious WWII-originating vehicles from the roads until Monday. Their website lists them as having 20.
About 51 people were treated for injuries at eight hospitals, Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins said, updating that number from 44. At least two people are in critical condition.
China's Consulate identified the fatalities to KOMO News as international students studying abroad at North Seattle College.
The school confirmed that 45 passengers on board the charter bus are their students and staff who were heading to Safeco Field as part of their student orientation.

HANDOUT/REUTERS
Firefighters assisted victims after a deadly crash between a charter bus and a Ride the Ducks tour vehicle on the Aurora Bridge in Seattle on Thursday morning.

GREG GILBERT/AP
Victims receive medical attention after the deadly collision along Aurora Bridge in Seattle.
"Our hearts go out to everyone involved in today's accident," the school said in a statement.
Scoggins said that 90 firefighters, 11 fire engines, seven ladders and eight paramedic units responded to the chaotic scene around 11:15 a.m. The crash involved two other passenger vehicles.
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"I was very proud about how our firefighters performed today," he said at the evening press conference.

TED S. WARREN/AP
A victim from Thursday morning's crash involving a charter bus and amphibious tour vehicle is loaded into an ambulance.

JOSHUA TRUJILLO/AP
A young man is carried away on a stretcher after the four-vehicle collision on the Aurora Bridge.

JOSHUA TRUJILLO/AP
A young woman is escorted from the wreckage with what appears to be a bloody elbow.
One man who was a passenger in an SUV involved in the crash described seeing the duck vehicle's wheel lock up before it "T-boned" the charter bus.
"We were braking as soon as I realized that the wheel locked up and the driver lost control," Bradly Sawhill, who said he was behind the duck bus, told reporters at the scene.
Another shocked witness told KIRO-TV that he saw some of the passengers fly out of the vehicles upon impact.
"Two people flew out of the front of the bus and I believe two people flew out of the Ride the Duck bus," Lance Jacobsen said.

ELAINE THOMPSON/AP
Emergency vehicles surround the site of a deadly crash between a charter bus and an amphibious tour vehicle in Seattle on Thursday.

ELAINE THOMPSON/AP
Seattle fire officials say four people have been killed and a dozen others critically injured in the crash that happened on a bridge over Lake Union.

ELAINE THOMPSON/AP
One man claiming to have witnessed the collision described seeing the Ride the Ducks vehicle verge into the middle lane before possibly over-correcting itself and hitting the charter bus head-on.
Jacobsen said the amphibious vehicle appeared to veer into the middle lane before both vehicles collided, leaving the charter bus looking as though it had exploded.
In a statement released by the tour company, they said they are leaving it up to "all investigating agencies to uncover the cause of the incident."
"Ride the Ducks of Seattle wishes to express our sincerest condolences to the victims and their families involved in today’s tragic accident," they stated in part. "We have always placed our passengers and the public’s safety as our highest priority."
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