New Jersey state police say two tractor-trailers were involved in a collision on the New Jersey Turnpike Wednesday. One of the trucks clipped the rear of the other truck. The collision caused one of the tractor-trailers to jack-knife. The jack-knifed truck became a major hazard on the Turnpike as a tour bus traveling through New Jersey became involved in the truck accident.

Police say the tour bus slammed into the rear of the jack-knifed tractor trailer shortly before noon Wednesday. The collision crushed the driver's side of the tour bus. The bus driver suffered critical personal injuries in the crash. As many as 14 passengers aboard the bus suffered injuries, according to State Police Sergeant Brian Polite.

After the wreck, emergency personnel had to extricate the driver from the crushed tour bus. The driver was airlifted from the accident site and taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital for treatment of critical injuries.

State Police say the bus was carrying 55 passengers at the time of the chain reaction truck and bus accident. One passenger reportedly was hospitalized in serious condition and two were listed in fair condition. Several passengers suffered minor personal injuries and were treated and released, according to authorities.

There has been quite a spotlight cast on bus accidents this year, with numerous reported crashes all along the East Coast. Dan Rona, a spokesperson for the American Bus Association, says the bus driver involved in Wednesday's chain reaction crash has no prior violations on his commercial license. The driver reportedly is an 11 year veteran as a professional driver.

The complete circumstances surrounding the bus and truck accident remain unclear. The crash remains under investigation.

Source: MyCentralJersey.com, "Bus driver critical after Turnpike accident," Aug. 24, 2011