RUNNING SPRINGS, CA. (Pain In The Pass) >> The church bus was carrying 36 adults and teens returning to Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Santa Ana Sunday night from a retreat in the Angelus Oaks area crash on Highway 330.
The crash happened on Highway 330 at a curve between Running Spring and Highland around 8:50pm November 9, 2025.
First-arriving recuse crews arrived to find the bus on its side in a turnout, with subjects extricating themselves including many through the vehicle’s roof hatch. The passengers, a mix of adults and teens, were traveling downhill on the way home to Orange County after attending a camp in the San Bernardino Mountains near Angelus Oaks.
San Bernardino County Fire resources quickly declared the incident an Mass Casualty Incident (MCI), with firefighters and paramedics setting up triage protocols, a patient treatment area and an ambulance loading zone. Meanwhile, the CHP shut down the highway in both directions to protect the scene.
A total of 26 patients, including three with major injuries, were treated. Of those, 20 were transported to area hospitals, all by ground ambulances. The balance of those on board declined EMS transport and/or treatment.
There was no fire or hazardous material exposure. No extrication operations were required.
The response included 11 engine companies, 11 ambulances and four chief officers to the scene. California Highway Patrol is the lead agency investigating the cause of the incident.
This past February, County Fire initiated a major multi-agency MCI drill. The scenario featured an overturned school bus with adults and teens on board. Several of the rescuers on scene last night participated in that drill, providing them with valuable experience in this kind of incident.
Coordination among multiple agencies helped get patients quickly on their way. The first patients were enroute to the ER within 15 minutes of the crews initiating the triage process, and by 10:30pm. all patients had been transported.
We will update this story with more information when the CHP’s preliminary accident report is available. This incident will be under investigation by the California Highway Patrol, Inland Office.
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