School bus, dump truck collide in NJ; Girl dead

CHESTERFIELD, N.J. - A school bus carrying elementary school children collided Thursday morning with a dump truck, killing an 11-year-old girl and critically injuring at two other children, authorities said.

Officials say 17 of the 25 students on board the bus were injured.

The accident occurred just after 8 a.m on Thursday at a four-way intersection in the town of Chesterfield, south of Trenton.

By mid-afternoon, eight students remained in the hospital. Three students were at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, two of them in critical condition. Five students were at Robert Wood Johnson University in New Brunswick. The injuries to the students at Robert Wood were not considered serious, officials said.

Sources say the female victim was the daughter of a New Jersey State Trooper.

Sources told CBS Philadelphia that the victim was a triplet and that her two siblings were on the bus at the time of the crash. The two siblings were air-lifted to Cooper University Hospital for treatment. One was seriously injured and the other had minor injuries, according to a person briefed on the investigation.

Chesterfield police Chief Kyle Wilson said the details are still being sorted out, but that the bus had a stop sign while the dump truck had a flashing yellow light.

Wilson said it was not clear whether the bus was attempting to cross the intersection or turn when the collision happened.

A boy being taken from the scene by his mother said "this big truck just came and slammed right into us." His mother did not want his name used.

The boy said the crash left some of his fellow students with bloody faces.

Students on the bus said they were wearing their seatbelts.

Gov. Chris Christie issued a statement saying his "thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved." He planned to comment further after more information was released on the accident.

The bus ended up upright against a large traffic signal pole at the intersection. The bus was crumpled where it hit the pole.

A large dump truck ran off the road and into a grassy area, where it left deep tire marks.

Investigators said both drivers suffered minor injuries and were treated at the hospital. Both were questioned by investigators.

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They put seatbelts on buses these days? Back in the dark ages when I went to school, the authorities were convinced seat belts would cause more injuries. Few accidents, many kids beating each other with the buckles. Seemed a sound theory to a pack of 5th graders.