An MTA bus jumped a curb and plowed into a crowded upper Manhattan sidewalk on Friday — injuring five people, including a man who need to have skull fragments removed from his brain, authorities said.
The uptown M4 was first struck by a green Dodge minivan at about 7:40 a.m. at 155th Street and Broadway in Washington Heights, causing the bus to go onto the sidewalk and hit two pedestrians before crashing into a restaurant.
Two people riding in the minivan, which also landed on the sidewalk, and the bus driver were injured. There were no passengers on the bus.
“There was a poor guy on the ground bleeding from everywhere. There was blood dripping down his head. He had blood on his hands,” said a restaurant worker who identified himself as Greg K.
Another worker inside the restaurant called Tommy’s was struck by flying debris during the accident, Greg K. added.
“The pedestrians started to run, but two couldn’t get out of the way on time,” Greg said.
Hospital worker Alexis Sanchez, 25, was walking with his girlfriend when the bus slammed into them.
“He has a skull fracture. He is having surgery now to remove fragments from his brain,” said Sanchez’s brother Jose Morales, 33.
Sanchez was more concerned with his gal pal, Carmen Juan, who suffered minor injuries, than himself, Morales said.
“He was worried about everybody else,” Morales said. “He kept asking about his girlfriend. I told him she is OK.”
Luiggy Gomez, 25, a paralegal who lives in the building, said of the crash, “I was sleeping and I felt the entire building shake. My bed shook. It was scary — and I live on the fifth floor.
“I came downstairs and there was a bloody person laying on the floor.”
The M4 runs between Penn Station and the Cloisters.
Additional reporting by Natasha Velez