The tour bus driver charged with DWI after fatally hitting and dragging a pedestrian for blocks in Hell's Kitchen reportedly had a 1.75 liter jug of vodka on the bus with him. And the Post adds that he had a "silver travel mug nearly-emptied of vodka" and the Daily News says that Steve Drappel, 57, a Florida resident, initially blew a 0.14 on a breath test.
Additionally, Drappel allegedly later blew a 0.083 on a breath test, which is "more than twice the legal limit of .04 for commercial drivers and over the .08 limit for all drivers."
Drappel had been driving a bus full of tourists back to their hotel in NJ when he was turning left onto Ninth Avenue from West 47th Street on Saturday night. Timothy White, a 29-year-old Philadelphia resident who had been visiting a cousin in the city, was apparently struck by the back of the bus. The NY Times reports, "Mr. White was caught in the rear wheels of the bus and dragged dozens of feet. The driver stopped after being alerted by another pedestrian who had chased the bus, the police said." A relative says that White had been an inspiration, "He'd been fighting a lifetime of illness with heart disease. He could have fought his entire life - and then to be brought down like this."
The tour company, L&L, had hired the bus from Travelynx, a Florida company. Travelynx has not had any recent crashes, but the Post finds "Drappel, who attended Flushing HS in Queens, has been cited for a half-dozen traffic violations since 1997 -- including three car accidents, speeding and twice driving with a suspended license." Ironically, he is a member of the "I HATE PEOPLE WHO CAN'T DRIVE FOR SHIT" page on Facebook.
Drappel was charged with DWI and manslaughter.
