Tour bus burns in fire-filled weekend

It was a hot weekend for Las Vegas fire and police officials as fires and accidents made it anything but relaxing.

A tour bus caught on fire as it traveled up a U.S. 95 on-ramp at Charleston Boulevard on Sunday at approximately 12:30 p.m.

The bus was empty except for the driver who suffered minor burns and a minor head injury while escaping from the bus. Fire investigators do not know the cause of the fire except that it started somewhere in the engine compartment.

In an unrelated fire, three people were taken to University Medical Center after a fire roared through their home at 1317 Winwood St. near Vegas Drive and Jones Boulevard Saturday morning.

A 28-year-old man was admitted to the burn unit with burns on 45 percent of his upper body. Two women, an 84-year-old and a 32-year-old, were taken to University Medical Center for smoke inhalation and irritation. Both were treated and released. Neighbors said they heard an explosion and saw thick black smoke escaping from the one-story wood frame house at 10:21 a.m. Once firefighters arrived the fire was declared under control in approximately 15 minutes.

The fire caused an estimated $70,000 in damage and the cause is still under investigation.

Traffic accidents also piled up in the Las Vegas Valley over the weekend.

A Sunday accident on eastbound U.S. 95 just past Martin Luther King Boulevard approaching the Spaghetti Bowl caused motorists a 15-minute traffic delay.

The two-car accident spread out into the lanes, causing a halt to traffic. No one was seriously injured in the fender bender.

A man who was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident Thursday remains in critical condition at UMC.

John Fontan, 25, was thrown from his motorcycle when he collided with a Ford Thunderbird on the Craig Road overpass at U.S. 95.

Witnesses said the driver of a Thunderbird, Edward Kulozynski, 51, was attempting to make a left turn from the eastbound lane onto the northbound U.S. 95 on ramp when Fontan struck the Thunderbird.

Fontan was transported to UMC with serious injuries while Kulozynski was not injured.

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