8 kids, driver injured in Butler County school bus crash
Eight Mars Area elementary students and a driver were sent to the hospital after a school bus slammed into a tree in Butler County on Thursday morning.
According to the Adams Township police chief, there were about 20 students on board when the bus crashed on Three Degree Road near the community park around 8:30 a.m.
Police said two students and the driver were transported from the scene, and UPMC later said that its hospitals treated eight kids who have all been released. There's been no word on the condition of the driver, who was taken to Allegheny General Hospital.
Adams Township Police Chief Shawn Anglum said before first responders were at the scene, people nearby helped to get the children out of the bus and to safety.
"There was a great response from the public, passerbys, people that live there prior to us getting there helping the kids out. Helping the kids, the bus driver," Anglum said.
According to the Mars Area School District, the bus was Elementary School Route 21. All the students were evaluated by emergency personnel and their parents or guardians were contacted. The district said students who were cleared by EMS were put on another bus and sent to school.
KDKA-TV reached out to AJ Myers and Sons, the bus company that serves the district, but they had no comment.
Police did not have any details on the experience level of the driver. State police helped with the reconstruction and investigation. At this point, there's no word on the cause of the crash.
Mom jumps into action after watching crash
Mom Kelley Baumgartel's son was about to board the bus when she watched it veer off the road. After calling 911, she ran to help, finding that the kids had already gotten the emergency door open.
"There were clearly some injuries that were observable. And then there were some other kids on the bus that couldn't get off. So there was another parent, a dad, who stopped and he was able to physically get on the bus and help more," Baumgartel said.
Baumgartel said she couldn't get to the driver because of the way the bus hit the tree.
"I couldn't open the door. So I kind of managed the kids and then more parents came and stopped," she said.
She added that something seemed to be wrong with the driver.
"It's interesting, I actually noticed, sitting here and watching the bus, the driver's body position looked different," she recalled.
One mom said a school bus crash is a parent's worst nightmare.
"You give them a hug and a kiss when they get on the bus in the morning, and hope that they, you know, come home safe," said Kelsey Roche.
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"I was shocked, it was a pretty bad crash," said Patrick McNulty, another parent in the district. "It's terrible, it's a tragedy. Hopefully they're all okay."
McNulty also praised the help provided by Baumgartel.
"It's great, she's a hero, really, for helping out the best you could given the situation," he said.
The district said it will have social workers at the school on Thursday and Monday for anyone who wants to talk. An in-service day is scheduled for Friday, and while there won't be any classes, guidance counselors will be available as needed.
Thursday's crash was the sixth in seven years
This morning's crash is at least the sixth crash involving a Mars Area School bus in the past seven years.
Four of those crashes were minor and no students were hurt. In 2018, a school bus driver was charged and later found not guilty for a crash in a construction zone in Adams Township.
Six students had to be taken to the hospital by ambulance and another 22 were bussed there to be checked out, but none of them were seriously hurt.
Now, parents are calling for change.
"I just hope that they can, if they need to make changes, make the changes that have to be done to make sure everybody's as safe as possible and the drivers are safe," McNulty said.
