At 11:45 PM on Wednesday night (September 18), a tour bus carrying members of country singer Josh Turner‘s road crew was involved in an accident on Highway 46 near Mcmillan Canyon in California. Turner and his band performed that night at Vina Robles Amphitheater.
According to KGET.com, which spoke with officials who responded to the crash, the bus carrying Turner’s crew drove off the road and went down a 50-foot embankment. Firefighters arrived with ropes to help pull the crew members up the embankment. Multiple helicopters and five ambulances were also on the scene, and both eastbound lanes of the highway were closed.
First responders confirmed with KGET that Turner and his musicians were not on the bus involved in the crash.
#CenterIC, @CALFIRE_SLO at scene Mass Casualty Incident. Passenger Bus off the roadway. Please drive with caution in the area.
— CAL FIRE SLO (@CALFIRE_SLO) September 19, 2019
The crash was fatal. KGET reports that the CAL FIRE San Luis Obispo Fire Department confirmed that one person was killed in the crash. Seven others were injured. The fire officials told the publication that of the seven people injured, two have major injuries and the other five have moderate injuries.
KGET states that the cause of the crash is still being investigated.
[UPDATE] #CenterIC 8 patients, 5 moderate, 2 major and 1 deceased. #Firefighters #EMS at scene. pic.twitter.com/EKtjy8CzKq
— CAL FIRE SLO (@CALFIRE_SLO) September 19, 2019
[FINAL] #CenterIC Confirmed Tour Bus of the Josh Turner Road Crew was involved in this accident. Mr. Josh Turner and band were in different buses and not injured. #CHP and #Firefighters will be at scene several hours for investigation and clean up. pic.twitter.com/zVnPEjy5BN
— CAL FIRE SLO (@CALFIRE_SLO) September 19, 2019
#CenterIC pic.twitter.com/8JEleeRIZ8
— CAL FIRE SLO (@CALFIRE_SLO) September 19, 2019
As of press time, Josh Turner has not made a public statement about the crash involving his crew members. We will be sure to update this article when and if he does.
In the meantime, we’ll be praying for Turner, his musicians, the injured crew members, and the family of the crew member who passed away.
UPDATE: It has been announced that the crew member who passed away is 64-year-old David Turner. He has been the sound engineer for Josh Turner for almost 14 years. He had previously worked for Tammy Wynette, Patty Loveless, and other well-known artists.
You can learn more about the tragic accident involving Turner’s crew by tuning in to the news report below.