What we know about the bus and company involved in deadly Stafford County crash

WASHINGTON (7News) — A deadly Stafford County, Virginia, crash early Friday morning took place along a section of Interstate 95 after a charter bus did not slow down in a work zone.

E&P Travel operated the bus, which was heading from New York City to Charlotte, North Carolina, when the crash occurred at around 2:35 a.m., according to officials. The driver, Jing S. Dong, 48, of Staten Island, was injured in the crash with charges pending.

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In a federal listing on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration website, E&P Travel is based out of Kings Mountain, N.C., roughly 30 miles from Charlotte. 7News made attempts to contact the company by phone and email, but was unsuccessful.

The company operates four vehicles and has 11 workers, according to the federal database.

Federal records showed three previous speeding-related violations, according to an April inspection.

Dong, according to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, is a naturalized U.S. citizen initially from China who does not speak English. He received his commercial driver’s license in New York State in 2024.

“Unacceptable. This is exactly why we are holding states accountable, enforcing the rules of the road, and cracking down on drivers who can’t speak English,” Duffy wrote on social media. “If you can’t be properly trained, read our road signs, or communicate with law enforcement, you have no business driving a bus.”

The Department of Transportation said it’s investigating New York licensing records, training documentation, and the driver’s history.

The incident occurred roughly a week after Homeland Security called for Congress to pass a bill called Delilah’s Law, which would bar states from providing commercial licenses to those in the U.S. illegally.