Massachusetts victims – Virginia State Police identified five Massachusetts residents killed in a fiery charter bus crash on Interstate 81 near Lexington, Virginia: a Greenfield couple and their two children, plus a 25-year-old Worcester woman. Authorities say the bus driver, identif
The call came after the crash on Interstate 81 near Lexington, Virginia, and by this week, the names began to settle into a community’s grief.
Virginia State Police identified five Massachusetts residents killed in a fiery charter bus crash Thursday: Dmitri Doncev. 45. and Ecaterina Doncev. 44. of Greenfield; their son Mark Doncev. 7; and their daughter Emily Doncev. 13. The victims also included 25-year-old Priscilla R. Mafalda of Worcester.
Authorities said the crash happened when a charter bus traveling from New York City to Charlotte. North Carolina. struck several vehicles as traffic slowed for roadwork. Investigators said the bus failed to slow down before slamming into a Chevrolet Suburban driven by Mafalda. The impact pushed the SUV into the Doncev family’s Acura, which caught fire.
In addition to the five people killed, 34 others were injured and taken to local hospitals, according to authorities.
The tragedy landed in at least two families at once. Dmitri was a nurse at Holyoke Medical Center, and the Boston Globe reported that he was driving his family through the night to attend a wedding in South Carolina when the crash occurred.
Dmitri’s 27-year-old niece. Carolina Bublik. shared the grief with the Globe. saying the Doncevs would join extended family at church every Sunday. “Now it’s going to be very difficult. the next Sunday that comes around. where we will not be able to have them sit next to us at the lunch table. ” Bublik said.
The Doncev children attended Providence Christian Academy, where officials said the loss is still moving through hallways and classrooms. “The Doncev family was a cherished part of our school community. and their loss is being felt deeply by our students. families. faculty. and staff. ” the school said in a statement.
A family friend has started a GoFundMe to raise money for the family’s funeral expenses.
Few details were immediately available about Mafalda.
Police have charged the bus driver, Jing S. Dong, 48, with two counts of involuntary manslaughter, and authorities said additional charges are pending. A Staten Island, New York, resident, Dong obtained his commercial driver’s license in 2024, according to Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.
At this point. the investigation has set out the sequence—roadwork. slowed traffic. a bus that did not slow. and a collision that turned into a fire. For the families in Greenfield and Worcester. the consequences are far harder to measure: the next church lunch table is already missing four seats. and the ride to a wedding that started through the night has ended with names confirmed by state police.
Virginia bus crash Interstate 81 Greenfield Massachusetts Worcester Providence Christian Academy Holyoke Medical Center Jing S. Dong involuntary manslaughter Priscilla Mafalda Doncev family