1 dead, 5 wounded in shooting rampage on Greyhound bus in California; driver hailed as 'heroic'

A woman was killed and five people wounded Monday when a gunman opened fire on a Greyhound bus on a California freeway, authorities said.

A man was in custody after the shooting along the Grapevine section of Interstate 5 in Kern County, about 80 miles north of Los Angeles, California Highway Patrol Sgt. Brian Pennings said. No motive for the attack had been determined, he said.

"I will tell you the bus driver, his actions were very appropriate," Pennings said. "One could say heroic."

A 911 call came in at 1:27 a.m. local time saying a man had shot several passengers on the bus, which had been bound for San Francisco from Los Angeles. Pennings said the driver immediately pulled the bus onto the shoulder of the highway and managed to get the shooter to exit the bus, leaving the gun behind.

The driver, whom Pennings did not name, then pulled off the highway at the next exit, parking the bus at a gas station.

Mark Grabban, 29, was on the bus with his girlfriend and told NBC News he noticed the suspect when he got on because he was very tall and appeared to be talking incoherently.

Later, the suspect said some expletives, cocked the gun and fired off eight or nine rounds as Grabban and his girlfriend dived under their seats, Grabban said. The shooter aimed for the back of the bus where they were sitting.

"I was assuming I was going to get shot," he said. "The (shell) casing ended up on my lap."

After the man got off the bus, the driver didn't immediately drive away, possibly mistaking the gunshots for engine backfires, Grabban said. Everyone screamed for the driver to pull away, and he did, Grabban said.

The driver parked at a gas station, where first responders rushed to the bus. One victim died at the scene, Penning said. The woman, identified by her passport, was described as a 51-year-old native of Colombia.

One of the wounded passengers was airlifted to a hospital, the others were shuttled by ambulance. Pennings said two were in serious condition; he had no information on the others.

Meanwhile, CHP officers raced to the site where the shooter was dropped off, arresting him without further incident, Pennings said.

The bus, which had been carrying 42 passengers and the driver, remained parked for hours at the gas station, surrounded in police tape.

"We are interviewing the witnesses and putting all the pieces together, " Pennings said.