Police in America were investigating whether a bus that crashed in New York, killing 14 people, may have been forced off the road by another vehicle.
The coach careered off a major highway and into a sign post that sheared it from end to end on Saturday morning, in one of the worst bus accidents in US history.
Emergency services described horrific scenes with the living tangled up with the dead among the twisted metal and broken glass of the wreckage.
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Fourteen of the 31 passengers died, while others were maimed.
Speaking from his hospital bed the driver of the bus, Ophadell Williams, told police that a tractor-trailer clipped his World Wide Tours bus as it crossed the city line on Interstate 95, while returning from a trip to the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut.
However, officers are also investigating witness claims that Williams was speeding before the crash.
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At a press conference on Saturday night Major Michael Kopy, of New York state police, said the crash was being handled "as if it is a criminal investigation."
He added: "At this point it appears that the operator lost control of the vehicle for what is as yet an undetermined reason,
"It will take a long period of time to determine what, if any, criminal acts may have occurred here," he added.
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Kopy said the driver’s blood had been taken for analysis and that state police were working with authorities in Connecticut and Mohegan Sun officials to establish his activities in the run-up to accident.
Police had earlier confirmed they were looking for the tractor-trailer, which did not stop after the crash.
It is believed the tractor-trailer was in a lane to the coach’s left, although it was unclear whether the two vehicles touched.
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The driver of a tractor-trailer that was in the area at the time of the crash was being interviewed. They said the trailer had been located on Long Island and the tractor was found in Westchester County. Both were being inspected in Farmingdale, on Long Island, to determine if they may have clipped the bus.
The crash happened at 5:35 am on Saturday, while many of the passengers were asleep.
The bus scraped along the guard rail for 300ft before toppling and crashing into the support pole for a highway sign indicating the exit for the Hutchinson Parkway.
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The pole cut through the bus front to back along the window line, peeling the roof off all the way to the back tires.
Most of those aboard were hurled to the front of the bus on impact.
Matthew Galvin of the NYPD's Emergency Service Unit was one of the first rescuers on the scene. He said when officers clambered into the wreckage, they found "bodies everywhere".
"People were moaning and screaming for help," he added.
About 20 people were being treated in local hospitals on Sunday, including at least six in a critical condition.
The victims are believed to residents of New York’s Chinatown district.