Seven people were killed and many others injured Thursday when a Phoenix-bound Greyhound bus crashed with a semi truck on Interstate 40 in New Mexico, police said.

“It was chaos,” said Officer Ray Wilson, a New Mexico State Police spokesman, in a media briefing. “The officers did a great job of sifting through the wreckage and the rubble to get survivors out of the bus…”

The New Mexico State Police said on Twitter that it appeared a tire blew out on an eastbound semitruck, causing it to veer into westbound traffic and crash head-on into the bus, shortly before noon. The crash occurred near Thoreau, N.M., about halfway between Albuquerque and Gallup.

Video and photos from the scene posted to social media show significant damage to the bus’s front third.

Greyhound officials confirmed in a statement that the bus originated in St. Louis on Wednesday morning, had stopped in Albuquerque and was heading to Phoenix. 

According to State police, 48 passengers were on board, but Greyhound spokeswoman Crystal Booker said 49 passengers were on the bus.

Information about the bus posted on the company website said it had stops scheduled in Grants, N.M., Gallup, N.M., Holbrook; Flagstaff; Glendale; and Phoenix, where it was scheduled to arrive at 4:25 p.m. 

An electronic schedule board at the main Phoenix Greyhound station Thursday afternoon showed the bus’ arrival time still posted, though it was listed as a few minutes after 4:30 p.m. The final scheduled destination was Los Angeles, where it was expected to arrive at 12:55 a.m. Friday.

The company’s web site later showed the stops scheduled after Grants were canceled, but the bus departing from Phoenix to Los Angeles still scheduled.

Greyhound spokeswoman Crystal Booker said the company is cooperating with the local authorities.

“Our first priority is taking care of our passengers and their families as this incident has deeply impacted all involved,” she said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone as we continue to give our support to all affected.”

Information on how many people were scheduled to get off the bus in Phoenix or Glendale was not immediately available.

State police said all but six people were taken to local hospitals but did not provide further details on injuries.

The driver of the semitruck sustained non-life-threatening injuries in the crash, the agency said. 

The crash shut the highway in both directions for hours, but by 8 p.m. one lane of the westbound interstate reopened along with both eastbound lanes, state police tweeted. 

ABC News reported, quoting authorities, that more than 33 patients had been taken to local area hospitals with injuries; some were in critical condition. 

The Gallup Indian Medical Center in Gallup received the most patients from the incident. Of the hospital’s 20 patients, four are children, officials there said in a conference call.

Kevin Gaines, the hospital’s acting field medical officer, said none of the hospital’s patients had died, but two are in serious condition and one is in critical condition.

Around 5:40 p.m., the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque confirmed to The Arizona Republic that five patients had been admitted and five were en route. Their conditions were unavailable.

Eric Huff was heading to the Grand Canyon with his girlfriend when they came across the crash, the Associated Press reported.

Huff said the semi’s trailer was upside down and “shredded to pieces,” and the front of the Greyhound bus was smashed, with many of the seats pressed together. Part of the bus’s side was torn off, he told the AP.

The National Transportation Safety Board said it will investigate the crash.

Friends and family in need of information can call Greyhound on their Friends and Family hotline at 1-800-972-4583. New Mexico State Police have also put out an updated family contact number. Families can call at 505-722-4246. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Check back with azcentral.com for updates.

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