- Federal investigators say the E&P Travel bus that crashed on Interstate 95 in Stafford County on May 29 traveled nearly a half mile after the initial impact, striking a series of vehicles in a chain-reaction crash before coming to rest in the median. Five people were killed, and numerous others were injured.
- The crash occurred shortly after 2:30 a.m. as traffic slowed for an overnight paving project. Investigators said the bus, traveling from New York City to North Carolina with 24 passengers, struck the rear of a Chevrolet Suburban and an Acura MDX before colliding with additional vehicles. A post-crash fire consumed the Acura.
- Bus driver Jing Sheng Dong, 48, of Staten Island, New York, faces five counts of involuntary manslaughter and a reckless driving charge. Authorities allege he was traveling at a high rate of speed and that there was no evidence he braked before impact.
- The five victims were from Massachusetts, including a family of four traveling to a wedding in South Carolina and a 25-year-old woman riding in the Suburban. Dozens of others were injured, including Dong, who has since been released from the hospital and remains jailed without bond.
- Scrutiny has intensified around E&P Travel, a North Carolina-based company formed in 2023. Reports have raised questions about its ownership, operating locations, driver qualifications and safety history, including a 2024 North Carolina crash in which an E&P bus failed to slow for a work zone and injured nine people.
- Dong, who requires a Mandarin interpreter in court, is scheduled for another court appearance in Stafford on July 1. The National Transportation Safety Board and Virginia State Police continue investigating the crash.
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From the Archives: Virginia Home for Boys and Girls
3-17-1962: A special sort of road. Lee Hazelgrove, 4, takes to his fire engine to try out new sidewalks at the Richmond Home for Boys. About 400 feet of sidewalk, costing $1,400, were donated to the home by the Downtown Optimist Club. Watching the test run are (from left) W. L. Hazelgrove, superintendent of the home at 8716 West Broad St.; Don N. Maloy, president of the club; G. S. Maynard, president of the home; Allen Meads, 6, and Steve Madison, 6.
9-18-1949: In mid-1949, youths from the Richmond Boys Home were eager to appear in "This is Our Way," a 20-minute movie that told the story of the Community Chest, now known as the United Way. Each of the 31 agencies serviced by the Chest had a part in the film, which premiered in September that year and was made available to anyone willing to show it. It was filmed over several months by the motion picture department of Reynolds Metals Co. as a donation to promote the good works of the Chest.
9-5-1965: In September 1965, Richmond Home for Boys Assistant Director W.H. Gormon (left) chatted with two residents. In front of them is the bell that had been used for 70 years to summon young residents. The organization was founded in 1846 as the Richmond Male Orphan Society and moved to its current current site on West Broad Street in Henrico County in 1957. It is now known as the Virginia Home for Boys and Girls.
In December 1959, boys help out with breakfast dishes at the Richmond Home for Boys.
Boys help with breakfast clean up at the Richmond Home for Boys in 1959.
4-26-1948: Boys Home celebrates anniversary--the oldest alumnus, 81-year-old James Phillips Schultz supervises a mumble-the-peg game played by Bobby Overman and Billy Garnett.
12-16-1959: The women who prepare breakfast for 44 boys have a busy hour. Mrs. Ethel Fisher (left), Mrs. Ruby Petit Work at Richmond Boys Home.
10-2-1958: Youngsters enjoy game of kickball on non-landscaped area at Richmond Home for Boys.
03-09-1969: Boys gather for a fast game of football on the campus of the Richmond Home for Boys. Ages start at six years and residents show appreciation for discipline.
