An accident involving a school bus and a small car destroyed both vehicles but resulted in only minor injuries for the 22 students and two adults involved.
Scott Swagler, who works in an office across the street, said accidents at the intersection of Whitehaven and Baseline roads are a common occurrence. When he heard the impact between the car and bus, Swagler looked out his window in time to see the bus strike a tree, shaking the ground as it crashed.
“I looked out the window and didn’t see anybody moving right away,” he said.
Swagler and a nearby utility crew rushed to the bus, opening emergency doors and helping the bus driver to evacuate the 22 elementary school children. The driver was very shaken up, Swagler said, but other than a couple of cuts the students on board were unharmed.
Erie County Sheriff’s Deputy Michael Summers, who heads up the accident investigation unit, said the accident was caused when another vehicle hit the bus.
“It appears at this point that the car ran a red light and collided with the school bus,” Summers said. “The bus and the car collided, the bus came off at the angle it did and went into the tree.”
The elderly driver of the car was taken to the hospital as a precaution, and the bus driver was treated for a knee injury. Police were in the process of interviewing witnesses and no determination of what, if any, charges would be brought had been made.
One child was taken to a pediatrician by his parents, and the other students were placed on another bus until they could be evaluated one at a time. While parents gathered outside the bus anxious to see their children, Summers said it was important to keep the students at the site until they could be properly examined for apparently minor injuries that could prove more serious.
“Children are tough to evaluate,” he said. “They’ll tell you they’re not hurt and then something will pop up later.”
Summers credited the design of school buses — with high seats that compartmentalize children in the event of a crash — with keeping the students safe.
“It could have been a lot worse,” Summers said.
Contact reporter Daniel Pye at 693-1000, ext. 158.
Photos
CLOSE CALL: A Grand Island school bus was hit by a car Tuesday afternoon and ended up striking a tree near the corner of Whitehaven and Baseline roads. Despite heavy damage to both vehicles, only minor injuries were reported. Daniel Pye/Staff/The Tonawanda News(Click for larger image)
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