Twelve Hickory Creek students were taken to the hospital Tuesday after a car slammed into their school bus as they were returning from a field trip to Bridgestone.
The driver of the car that hit the bus, Veronica Scott, was able to escape injury despite the fact the front of her vehicle was flattened when it slid underneath the back of the bus on impact.
Twelve fourth-graders from the classes of Tenara Martin and Jayme Jaco were taken to St. Thomas River Park Hospital by ambulance for treatment of noncritical injuries. The remaining students were loaded aboard another bus and taken back to school.
The wreck happened just before 2 p.m. as bus 0544 was making a turn onto Manchester Highway from Bridgestone Drive. The students were returning from a field trip to Beach, an educational arm of Bridgestone which sees thousands of student visits each year.
As the bus pulled into the intersection with the protection of the turn arrow, witnesses told lawmen Scott’s vehicle came through the intersection and collided with the driver’s side back quarter panel of the bus. The collision saw Scott’s car submerge under the back of the bus, with the bus tail nearly crushing the driver’s compartment. The car came to rest in a westbound lane of Manchester Highway while the bus pulled safely across the street.
“We’re glad no one was seriously injured as far as we can tell,” said Director of Schools Bobby Cox, who arrived minutes after the collision. “We’ve tried to make contact with parents before they start hearing from other areas.”
Most of the students taken to the hospital went to the ambulance under their own power. However, at least one student was placed on a backboard for precautionary reasons before being transported.
Car collides with school bus
Students hospitalized
