Pennsylvania school bus carrying 29 students plunges into creek, crash caught on video
9 reported with minor injuries, including bus driver, Easton police say
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A school bus carrying more than two dozen students in Pennsylvania was caught on video crashing through a guardrail and plunging 50 feet down an embankment into a creek below, leaving multiple onboard with minor injuries, authorities said.
The crash happened around 8 a.m. Monday in Easton, a city about 55 miles north of Philadelphia, FOX29 Philadelphia reported.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Easton Area School District bus had 29 middle school students on board when it smashed through the guardrail on Bushkill Drive, Easton Police Sgt. Joseph Alonzo told the station.
"To go through a guardrail, you have to strike that with some serious force, just to be able to get through that and through those trees," Alonzo said, adding that the vehicle’s weight and speed must first be taken into account.
Alonzo said nine people, including the bus driver, suffered minor injuries and were taken to a hospital for treatment.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The crash happened around 8 a.m. Monday in Easton, a city about 55 miles north of Philadelphia. (FOX29 WTXF)
"I was definitely really scared because I almost died," Jayden Melendez, a 12-year-old student, told KYW-TV. "Everyone was scared then a kid opened the emergency exit and we all started running out."
Dashcam video from a vehicle driving behind the bus just before the crash shows the bus appearing to drive onto the grassy shoulder while on a curved part of the road, Lehigh Valley Live reported.
Police said 29 middle school students and a bus driver were onboard at the time of the crash. (FOX29 WTXF)
The video shows the bus swerving into the oncoming traffic lane and through the guardrail before disappearing down the embankment.
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Police told the paper that they have spoken to the citizen who posted the dashcam video on YouTube and are in possession of the video.
Alonzo said nine people, including the bus driver, suffered minor injuries and taken to a hospital for treatment. (FOX29 WTXF)
While the school district is facing a bus driver shortage like others around the country, school officials said that was likely not a factor, according to FOX29.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Police told the station that the bus driver is cooperating as the investigation into the crash continues.