The Chualar bus crash took place on September 17, 1963, when a

freight train A freight train, also called a goods train or cargo train, is a railway train that is used to carry cargo, as opposed to passengers. Freight trains are made up of one or more locomotives which provide propulsion, along with one or more railroad ...

collided with a makeshift "bus"— a flatbed truck with two long benches and a canopy— carrying 58 migrant

farmworker A farmworker, farmhand or agricultural worker is someone employed for labor in agriculture. In labor law, the term "farmworker" is sometimes used more narrowly, applying only to a hired worker involved in agricultural production, including har ...

s on a

railroad crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an overpass or tunnel. The ...

outside Chualar in the

Salinas Valley The Salinas Valley (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Valle de Salinas'') is one of the major valleys and most productive Agriculture, agricultural regions in California. It is located west of the San Joaquin Valley and south of San Francisco Bay and ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, 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 National Safety Council (NSC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, public service organization promoting health and safety in the United States. Headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, NSC is a member organization, founded in 1913 and granted a congress ...

. The collision was a factor in the decision by

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

in 1964 to terminate the

bracero program The Bracero Program (from the Spanish term ''bracero'' , meaning " manual laborer" or "one who works using his arms") was a temporary labor initiative between the United States and Mexico that allowed Mexican workers to be employed in the U.S. ...

, despite its strong support among farmers. It also helped spur the Chicano Civil Rights Movement.

Background

The workers riding on the bus lived at the Earl Myers Company labor camp in Salinas,

Monterey County, California Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county (United States), county located on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 439,035. The count ...

, and were returning after a ten-hour shift harvesting celery and other vegetables from two fields in the Salinas Valley. 53 were braceros contracted by the Growers Farm Labor Association of Salinas. There were also five non-bracero farm laborers, including one undocumented immigrant and two transients who were not Mexican-Americans. Of the five, only the undocumented immigrant was killed. The passengers were riding on two long board benches running the length of the vehicle, which was a

flatbed truck A flatbed truck (or flatbed lorry in British English) is a type of truck the bodywork of which is just an entirely flat, level 'bed' with no sides or roof. This allows for quick and easy loading of goods, and consequently they are used to trans ...

covered with a canopy, with the passengers unable to communicate with the driver. It was typical of the converted vehicles used to transport farmworkers in California, which in subsequent years have been criticized for endangering the safety of farmworkers. Some of the workers were sitting on the floor of the bus amid metal food containers and long knives used in the harvesting. The driver was the workers' foreman, Francisco "Pancho" Espinosa, who was a permanent U.S. resident.

Crash

Between 4:20 to 4:25 p.m., Espinosa was traveling east on Thomas Ranch Road, a private country lane, approaching a single railroad track just to the west of, and parallel to,

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a major north–south highway that traverses the states of California, Oregon, and Washington on the West Coast of the United States. It is part of the United States Numbered Highway Syst ...

, a mile south of Chualar and about eight miles south of Salinas. The crossing, which was privately maintained, was not marked by lights, signs or signals. There were no trees, crops or other objects impeding visibility down the train tracks. A freight train from the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Railroad classes#Class I, Class I Rail transport, railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was oper ...

with four diesel locomotives, the lead unit being SP 5857, an ALCO RS-11, pulling 71 cars carrying

sugar beets A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

, and a

caboose A caboose is a crewed North American railroad car coupled at the end of a freight train. Cabooses provide shelter for crew at the end of a train, who were formerly required in switching and shunting; as well as in keeping a lookout for load ...

, was approaching from the south at a high speed, either , according to the railroad, or , according to the

California Highway Patrol The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is the principal state police agency for the U.S. state of California. The CHP has primary jurisdiction, including patrol and Criminal investigation, investigations, over all California Controlled-access highw ...

. The precise speed was never determined with certainty. The train crew applied the emergency brake. Not realizing the train was approaching, the driver moved slowly across. The train collided with the bus. Despite the application of the emergency brake, the train did not come to a stop until the front of the train had proceeded north of the intersection. Years later, a survivor recalled that the bus was struck in the rear, and that he survived because he went to the front.

Victims

The 32 dead and injured were scattered around the tracks, some thrown more than . Twenty-three died at the scene and nine died en route to the hospital or afterwards. Fifteen ambulances carried victims from the scene. Many casualties were inflicted by being dragged along with the bus and direct impact by the train, while other injuries were caused by splintered flooring planks, jagged edges of twisted metal, harvest knives and metal equipment. One victim was cut in half by the wheels of the train. The injuries were so gruesome that blood flowed like water from one ambulance, according to one account. The dead ranged in age from 19 to 59, and a partial count indicated that they left behind 37 dependents under the age of 16. They came from the Mexican states of

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

Guanajuato Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo, is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City, compose the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The stat ...

Puebla Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...

Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...

and

Zacatecas Zacatecas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Zacatecas, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 31 states of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Zacatecas, 58 municipalities and its capital city is Zacatecas City, Zacatec ...

. No one on the train was hurt, and the only person on the bus who was uninjured was the driver, Espinosa.

Identification

Initially only twelve bodies were identified, because of the custom that the workers be identified only by number, not by name, and the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

was called in to identify most of the deceased. The failure to identify the bodies was cited by critics of the bracero program, who said it indicated how Mexican workers were not treated as persons. The funeral arrangements became a fiasco, with Salinas municipal authorities and the Mexican consulate fighting over who would handle the bodies. Local newspapers reported a "macabre funeral hassle". Ultimately the dispute was resolved, the town was allowed to participate, and 9,000 people attended the funeral, which was held at Palma High School in Salinas.

Court proceedings and investigations

Espinosa was arrested and charged with 32 counts of felony

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...

, which were later reduced to misdemeanor counts after a grand jury recommended leniency. He claimed he did not hear or see the train approaching, and was acquitted in December 1963 after a four-day trial. An

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later Trucking industry in the United States, truc ...

investigation blamed the accident on him for failure to exercise "due caution" at the crossing. The ICC determined that Espinosa had "an unobstructed view of the railroad throughout a considerable distance," and that "the driver could have readily observed the approaching northbound train if he had looked southward along the track." Espinosa, in fear of retribution, fled California after his acquittal. In September 1964, a state official, who was seeking to serve notice of revocation of his driver's license, reported that his sister-in-law said Espinosa had been slain in Mexico by relatives of crash victims. That account was disputed. In 1967, a federal court lawsuit filed by the victims' families was settled by payment of $1.5 million. The sum was divided among 24 injured and 164 heirs of workers killed in the crash, most of whom lived in Mexico. The defendants in the suit were the

, Growers Farm Labor Association, Harden Farms and Myers Corporations of Salinas. The State Compensation Fund had already paid $450,000 to beneficiaries and was expected to pay $400,000 more. In 2014, a crash survivor recalled receiving 92,000 Mexican pesos as compensation in 1968.

Galarza inquiry

Ernesto Galarza Ernesto Galarza (August 15, 1905 – June 22, 1984) was a Mexican-American labor organizer, activist, professor, poet, writer, storyteller, and a key figure in the history of immigrant farmworker organization in California. He had a dream of giving ...

, a Mexican-American labor activist, was appointed to investigate the tragedy by Adam Clayton Powell Jr., chairman of the

Committee on Education and Labor The Committee on Education and Workforce is a Standing committee (United States Congress), standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. There are 45 members of this committee. Since 2025, the chair of the Education and Work ...

of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

. His investigation was opposed by the California Farm Bureau Federation, which contended that Galarza was biased, and met with local suspicion and hostility, as well as lack of cooperation from Demco Farms, the owner of the bus. Galarza reported that Espinosa was kept in seclusion, preventing him from giving testimony, and that Southern Pacific declined to permit inspection of its equipment until some time after the accident. His report also stated that survivor testimony was not put on the record of the Espinosa trial or any hearing. Galarza found that Espinosa was a diabetic, which curbed his field of vision, and the foreman sitting to his right impaired his view of the oncoming train. Although Espinosa's defense at the trial was that his field of view was limited by telephone poles and signal posts, as well as by his diabetes, Galarza had not found any manmade objects obstructing his view of the railroad track. Galarza also questioned how Espinosa could have obtained his chauffeur's license, since he did not speak English. His investigation concluded that the accident exemplified the growers' disregard for the safety of the bracero workers. He found that the accident was directly caused by negligence, exemplifying a practice in which flatbed trucks were illegally converted to buses, driven by poorly trained personnel, which had caused several other bus crashes causing multiple fatalities. He recommended that regulation of transportation of migrant workers be improved. Galarza's 72-page report to the House Education and Labor Committee was published in April 1964. He also wrote a book on the accident and its aftermath, ''Tragedy at Chualar'', which was published in 1977.

Legacy

The accident has long been a rallying point for immigration rights and

Chicano Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement. In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...

farmworker activists. All but two of the victims were Mexican or Mexican-American, and most were Mexican guest workers participating in the

, which had been in place since 1942 and had been drawing mounting criticism from labor activists and civil rights workers who contended that it exploited Mexican laborers and deprived Americans of jobs. The accident supported the views of critics that Bracero workers were treated shabbily, helping to spur the demise of the program in 1964. The accident was a reminder of the braceros' vulnerability as guest workers in the United States. Union leaders and Mexican-American activists contended that the tragedy demonstrated the inequities in the bracero program, which they contended exploited Mexicans while displacing American workers. It spurred the development of the Chicano civil rights movement. The lead locomotive of the train, SP 5857, was repaired and put back into service, later being renumbered #2922. A crash test and approximate recreation of the collision was conducted in the 1980s with a

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

GE U30C locomotive and an unoccupied school bus. Coincidentally, the locomotive used for the crash test was numbered 2922. Two survivors of the bus crash were still alive as of 2014. The current location of the crash site is adjacent to the intersection of Foletta Road and Broome Road. At some unknown date after the accident Broome Road was reconfigured to prevent any crossing of the train tracks.Google Maps satellite view of the accident site
/ref>

Commemorations

The portion of Route 101 where the accident occurred was named "Bracero Memorial Highway" at the 50th anniversary of the accident in 2013. At that time two survivors of the crash were still alive.