Woman climbed inside RIPTA bus to help passengers following crash

Amanda Lansing is still trying to wrap her head around the accident that left a RIPTA bus jammed into a Warwick store front.

"I started noticing the bus starting to drift, not into the next lane but into the curb to the right. Right after that I saw the telephone pole blow to pieces,” said Lansing.

She was driving right behind that bus on post road Monday night before it crashed. She says she immediately jumped in to help after the bus crashed into the building.

"I parked and I ran to see how many people were in the bus,” said Lansing.

She climbed on board through a side door using her cell phone to see.

"It was a lot of smoke going on at first,” said Lansing. “The whole front was caved in from hitting the pole."

Once inside, Lansing tried to help a man lying face down on the bus floor. She says another good Samaritan focused on the driver and the other trapped passenger.

"He kept moaning yes that he could hear us and we were just telling him you’ll be ok,” said Lansing.

Lansing estimates she was on the bus for about 15 minutes before emergency crews were able to get inside.

The driver and one of the passengers are said to be in critical condition at Rhode Island Hospital.

A third man was released from the hospital with minor injuries.

(C) WLNE 2015