This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2008, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Posted: 2:09 PM- Back in Michigan, people who know Welland Lotan's apparently spotless driving record were surprised to learn he was the driver when a charter bus crashed in southeastern Utah, killing nine people returning from a ski trip.
Lotan, 71, lives in Gladwin County, Mich., and drives there for American Tour Club, a charter service. He and wife Betty spend winters in Apache Junction, Ariz., where he also drives buses.
"He's driven for us for six years," American Tour owner Jim Stange told The Bay City (Mich.) Times. "He's put on hundreds of thousands of miles for us without so much as a ding or scratch on a bus. His record's perfect."
Stange was stunned when he learned that Lotan was driving a bus that went off a twisting highway and rolled several times Sunday night near Mexican Hat, in the Four Corners area where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona meet.
The bus was among 17 returning to Phoenix after a long ski weekend in Telluride, Colo. The roof was sheared, ejecting many of the 51 passengers, some 100 yards or more.
"He's just so cautious," Stange said of Lotan. "He took pride in the fact that he doesn't speed, doesn't tailgate, doesn't pass people without wide clearance. ... Of all my drivers, he's the guy who always checks all the equipment.
"He's all about responsibility. He's driven all his life," Stange said.
Indeed, records show no violations on Lotan's driving record, according to the Michigan Secretary of State.
Lotan was not seriously injured but remains at an Arizona hospital. Two people were in critical condition Friday at hospitals in Grand Junction, Colo., and Salt Lake City. Names were not released.
"I'm just too upset to talk," Betty Lotan told the Times.
The bus belonged to Corporate Transportation 'N Tours of Phoenix, which is affiliated with Arrow Stage Lines of Nebraska.
The Utah Highway Patrol and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash. They are focusing on why Lotan failed to handle a curve on State Route 163, which is a risky place to drive a large vehicle at night.
"It looks like it could be operator error," UHP Lt. Todd Peterson said. "But we're keeping any statements he made close to our vest."
Gladwin-area friends said Lotan is an avid golfer in the Sugar Springs retirement community in Michigan.
"You always see him on a golf cart, driving around, protecting everyone, keeping an eye out for balls," said Anthony Raineri, a Sugar Springs golfer and restaurant worker. "Everyone up here loves him."