DESERT HOT SPRINGS, Calif. (AP) - The Latest on a deadly tour bus crash in Southern California (all times local):
12:10 p.m.
Authorities say the driver of a tour bus that crashed into the back of a semi-truck, killing at least seven people, was one of the owners of the company.
California Highway Patrol Officer Stephanie Hamilton tells the Desert Sun newspaper in Palm Springs (http://desert.sn/2ekf1LI ) that the driver was an owner of USA Holiday, based near Los Angeles. Authorities say the bus may have been coming from a casino.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration says the company has one vehicle and one driver. Records show it had no crashes and one inspection in the two years before Oct. 22 and had a satisfactory safety rating.
A phone message left for the company wasn't immediately returned. A Facebook message from USA Holiday said it didn't have much information about the crash.
The company posts on social media about trips leaving the Los Angeles area to casinos around the Coachella Valley and Las Vegas.
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10:10 a.m.
The California Highway Patrol says at least seven people have died after a tour bus and a semi-truck crashed on a freeway near Palm Springs.
CHP Officer Stephanie Hamilton confirmed the fatalities to the Desert Sun newspaper in Palm Springs (http://desert.sn/2ekf1LI ) as of 7:30 a.m. Sunday. The newspaper reports more bodies are being removed by firefighters using ladders to climb into the bus' windows.
It says at least 25 bus passengers have been taken to area hospitals.
Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs has received 14 patients. Hospital director of marketing Rich Ramhoff says five are in critical condition, three in serious condition and six had minor injuries.
Lee Rice of Eisenhower Medical Center says the Rancho Mirage hospital received 11 adult patients, all with minor injuries.
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9:19 a.m.
The California Highway Patrol says at least three passengers were killed when a tour bus and a semi-truck crashed on a highway in Southern California.
CHP Officer Stephanie Hamilton tells the Desert Sun newspaper in Palm Springs (http://desert.sn/2ekf1LI ) that crews were searching the bus for more victims after the wreck early Sunday on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near the desert resort town.
The newspaper reports at least 21 victims have been taken to Palm Springs-area hospitals.
Photos show the front of the passenger bus pushed into the semi-truck's trailer.
Hamilton says "the intrusion into the bus compartment is significant."
Firefighters are using ladders into the bus' windows to pull out victims.
The CHP says all westbound lanes of the highway are closed and traffic is being diverted.