Dropped Thermos probable cause of crash
Bus driver’s container was lodged under brakes and likely led to fatal incident: Feds
BY MARK HALLUM
A year and five months after
a Dahlia Group motorcoach
blew through a red light,
slammed into a city bus
and killed three commuters
in Flushing, the National
Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) announced last week
that a Thermos lodged under
the brakes was the likely cause
of the wreck.
The report released by
the federal agency on Feb.
21 determined that the
destruction may not have been
a reflection the operator’s
spotty driving record or the
company’s history of violations
and included a photo with
the thermos stuck under the
pedals of bus.
“Investigators found no
evidence that the motorcoach
driver’s experience, training,
route familiarity or pre-crash
activities were factors in the
collision. The GPS recording
indicates the motorcoach
driver was conscious and
aware of the hazardous
conditions preceding the crash
but was unable to control the
vehicle’s speed,” the report
said. “At the scene of the
crash, investigators found a
metal Thermos bottle near the
control pedals. The Thermos
could potentially explain the
Emergency workers pull apart the wreckage of the two buses after a 2017 collision that left three
people dead in downtown Flushing. Photo by Mark Hallum
metal rattling heard on the
audio recording.”
Although the evidence may
seem pretty convincing, the
agency is cautious to draw any
conclusions after listening
to the recording in which the
driver, Raymond Mong, was
said to utter “a single-word
remark as the motorcoach
increases its speed.”
Investigators at the time
had evaluated through
video surveillance that the
motorcoach had increased its
speed and ran a red light at
Main Street as it was moving
eastbound on Northern
Boulevard at 6 a.m. on
Sept. 18, 2017.
The Dahlia bus collided
with a Q20 bus making a
right turn onto Northern
Boulevard between 54 and
62 miles per hour, NTSB said
at the time. The Q20 bus,
with 16 passengers aboard,
spun and the motorcoach
went through the front of the
Kennedy’s Fried Chicken
on the southeast corner,
injuring two pedestrians and
killing one.
Three people, including
Mong, died in the wreck.
Dahlia, which is still in
operation, became the object
of public scrutiny as it was
revealed that the company had
about 18 violations, including
seven for unsafe driving.
A look into Mong’s
driving history also painted
a grim description of Dalhia’s
operations in which it was
found that in 2015, he had been
fired from the MTA as a bus
driver following a Connecticut
accident for which he was
found guilty of DWI.
The state Department of
Motor Vehicles said at the time
that it was not aware Mong
was still driving a bus and
Dahlia had not reported to the
agency they had hired him, as
required by law.
For now, NTSB is filing
the Thermos scenario
as a “probable cause” of
“the driver’s unintended
acceleration of the motorcoach
and inability to brake for
reasons that could not be
conclusively determined from
the information available.”
Mong was a resident of
College Point, and the report
said his wife remembered him
leaving the for work that day
with the Thermos.
Reach reporter Mark
Hallum by e-mail at mhallum@
schnepsmedia.com or by phone
at (718) 260–4564.
Vallone proposes renaming street after late activist
BY JENNA BAGCAL
Less than a month after
Joe Femenia’s death, a local
councilman has proposed a
College Point street naming in
honor of the civic leader.
City Councilman Paul
Vallone announced plans to
co-name of the intersection of
23rd Avenue and 130th Street
after the College Point Civic and
Taxpayers Association (CPCTA)
president, who died suddenly of
a heart attack in January.
“The tragic and unexpected
passing of Joseph Femenia was
a great loss for all of College
Point,” said Vallone. “The
victories and ongoing battles
to preserve and protect College
Point will always be part of
Joe’s great legacy. He will now
be forever remembered for
generations as they look to the
street sign recognizing his great
legacy. I will forever cherish
Joe’s friendship, vision and the
leadership he displayed as we
worked together.”
Vallone plans to introduce
the bill to co-name the
intersection after Femenia,
which will be passed later this
year. A co-naming ceremony
will also likely be set for late
this summer.
“Naming a street for Joe is
a tribute to his hard work and
dedication to make College
Point a better place to live and
work. He spent countless hours
for over a decade making the
College Point Civic Association
a strong community based
organization that became the
voice of the community,” said
Tom Palma, Chair of the College
Point Board of Trade. “The
street sign will become a lasting
symbol and remembrance that
we all need to dedicate time to
get involved in order to improve
the community that we live in.”
The community received
the news of Femenia’s
untimely passing at the
monthly CPCTA meeting
on Jan. 30. The 62-year-old
civic leader and activist
had been the organization’s
president since 2008. He also
served as Community Board
7 member and the board’s
Transportation Committee
chairperson for 10 years.
Joe Femenia (r.) with City Councilman Paul Vallone.
Courtesy of Vallone’s offi ce
16 TIMESLEDGER, MARCH 1-7, 2019 QNS.COM
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