Merced County Sheriff-coroner says bus crash killed 4, not 5

Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke who also serves as his county's coroner says a bus crash on a rural highway killed four people, not five.

Warnke gave the new total Wednesday after canvassing hospitals and checking with coroner's officials in a neighboring county. He says he knows of no deaths among those taken to hospitals.

Shortly after Tuesday's crash, a California Highway Patrol officer at the scene said five people died.

The bus struck the pole of a road sign, and it tore through the seating area. The sheriff says there were dismemberments.

Warnke says the dead include a married couple from Mexico who were traveling to visit a daughter in Pasco, Washington, and a man from Avalon, California, whose spouse is hospitalized.

A fourth victim is only identified as a man in his late 30s whose family is being sought through a Mexican consulate.