Willie Nelson’s Band Tour Bus Crashes in Texas
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Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images(DALLAS) — Three of Willie Nelson’s bandmates were hospitalized and Nelson’s tour suspended after the band’s tour bus crashed on Saturday morning near Sulphur Springs, Texas.
Willie Nelson’s team issued a statement of their website and Facebook this morning saying that icy conditions were to blame for the accident, which occurred at 3:30 a.m. on a bridge off Interstate 30, approximately 80 miles northeast of Dallas.
“Willie Nelson’s band bus (not Willie’s bus) was in an accident overnight on icy I-30. 3 members of the family were hospitalized. Additional information will be released as we get it,” the statement said.
A spokeswoman with Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed that Willie Nelson was not on the bus and that the driver of the bus was struggling to navigate through heavy rain and strong winds before the vehicle crashed into a bridge pillar.
Trooper Sylvia Jennings said five band members and driver were on board, but only three were injured and taken to Hopkins County Memorial Hospital shortly after the accident.
Drummer Robert Paul English sustained the most serious injuries, with a broken hip, while bandmates Billie Jean English and Thomas Ray Hawkins received only a few bumps and bruises, said Jennings.
Nelson’s rep confirmed all three have been since released from the hospital.
The famed American country singer-songwriter was scheduled to perform at the Horseshoe Casino in Tunica, Miss., on Saturday night, but the concert has been postponed, along with the Nelson’s last four dates in November.
“This year’s Willie Nelson tour has been suspended indefinitely,” Nelson’s reps wrote. “We will post more when it becomes available.”
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