Chualar train-bus collision
| Chualar bus crash | |
|---|---|
The Chualar bus crash site in 2021 | |
| Details | |
| Date | September 17, 1963 |
| Location | Chualar, California, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 36°33′14.24″N 121°30′10.44″W / 36.5539556°N 121.5029000°W |
| Incident type | Grade crossing collision |
| Cause | Bus driver negligence |
| Statistics | |
| Vehicles |
|
| Deaths | 32 |
| Injured | 25 |
The Chualar bus crash took place on September 17, 1963, when a freight train collided with a makeshift "bus"— a flatbed truck with two long benches and a canopy— carrying 58 migrant farmworkers on a railroad crossing outside Chualar in the Salinas Valley, California, United States, killing 32 people and injuring 25. The crash is ranked as the deadliest automobile accident in U.S. history, according to the National Safety Council.
The collision was a factor in the decision by Congress in 1964 to terminate the bracero program, despite its strong support among farmers. It also helped spur the Chicano Civil Rights Movement.