That ended the situation, Carroll thought.

Minutes later, he heard a commotion behind him.

"One guy said, "I can't believe he did it' and another said 'He jumped,'" said Carroll, a Phoenix resident.

To his horror, Carroll discovered the passenger used the emergency release lever to open his window. He climbed out of the bus while it was traveling 65 mph.

The man hung onto the side of the bus for a few moments and then fell to the freeway, where he was struck and killed by a car traveling 70 mph, the California Highway Patrol said.

The CHP is unsure why the man jumped. The man said nothing to indicate he was despondent or wanted to commit suicide, said CHP Officer Tony Nguyen. The man was quiet during the entire trip until he asked to be dropped off, Carroll said.

Authorities also don't know the man's name because he didn't carry any identification. Officers estimate the man was about 21 years old.

Carroll, who has been a Greyhound driver for nearly 30 years, said he's never had a passenger jump out of his bus before.

"We get all kinds of strange people, especially going to L.A. or coming back from L.A. It's usually someone talking to themselves or someone dressed really strange. But I've never heard of anything like this happen before," he said.

Carroll, whose route stretches from Phoenix to Los Angeles, said he was driving on the 10 just east of Vineyard Avenue at 10:20 p.m. when the passenger approached him. The Latino man, who spoke broken English, asked to get off the bus. When Carroll told him he couldn't stop, the man eventually agreed he would stay on the bus until it reached Los Angeles, Carroll said.

"About five to 10 minutes later, he climbed out the window and was actually hanging outside the bus," Nguyen said. "Several passengers were trying to pull him back in when he fell onto the roadway."

The passenger was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:43 p.m., San Bernardino County coroner's officials said.

Carroll had about 35 passengers on his bus. The full route begins in Dallas, but Carroll's portion of the route starts in Phoenix, he said.

The man survived the fall and was trying to stand up on the freeway when he was struck by a car, officials said.

Tamara Bersbach, 20, of Upland, who was driving a 1999 Volkswagen Passat, swerved to avoid him, but was unsuccessful. The front of her car struck the man in the head, officers said.

Carroll pulled off the freeway and Bersbach stopped on the shoulder, the CHP said.

Officers shut down the freeway for about 15 minutes while they set up flares to route other motorists around the crash.

The 61-year-old bus driver said the incident seemed surreal at first, but when the shock wore off, passengers and emergency workers were by his side to offer assistance.

The driver, who is used to customers complaining about baggage or other worries, said his passengers shook his hand and were concerned about him.

"It humbled me. That's what I think it did," he said.

Melissa Pinion-Whitt can be reached by e-mail at m_pinion-whitt@dailybulletin.com or by phone at (909) 483-9378.

Submitted on 07/19/2005

Submitted by: Leslie Rusch
Reference: Inlnd Valley Daily Bulltn 7/18

Copyright © 2005 DarwinAwards.com

Kelly said:
Definitely Keep: Darwin Award
I would love to know what was going on in the man's mind.

Tracy said:
Neutral: Darwin Award
It needs a humurous write-up, but could have potential. Why on earth???? I'm just worried the guy was ill

Jack said:
Neutral: Darwin Award
Is it just my imagination, or are we getting a rash of people jumping out of vehicles recently?

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