Woman taken to hospital after crash involving school bus with kids on board
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BURTON — A woman was transported to the hospital after a school bus with kids and a car crashed Friday morning.
The two-vehicle incident happened before 8 a.m. at the intersection of 1000 South 4000 West in Burton. It involved a PT Cruiser and a Madison School District 321 school bus.
According to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, a preliminary investigation shows the driver of the school bus failed to yield after stopping at a stop sign on 1000 South.
“(The bus) driver thought it was a four-way stop. The bus driver came to a stop and proceeded to go forward. It was not a four-way stop. The car coming from the other side did not have to stop, and there was a collision,” said Madison School District Superintendent Randy Lords. “The other vehicle did not have to stop, and it was their right of way, and the bus driver proceeded.”
The 62-year-old woman, who was the driver of the PT cruiser, had to be extricated from her vehicle by Madison Fire Rescue crew members, according to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.
Cpt. Mike Courtney with the sheriff’s office told EastIdahoNews.com she was transported by ground ambulance to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center due to her injuries, however, the extent of her injuries is unknown at this time.
Lords said about 17 students on their way to Burton Elementary School were on the bus.
According to Courtney, medical crews checked out all the children and no visible injuries were reported. The students were then taken to school by another bus.
Lords told EastIdahoNews.com the bus driver would be cited by law enforcement. As for what will happen within the district with the bus driver, Lords said it is a personnel issue and could not comment further.
He said that they try to train the bus drivers the best they can and take the safety of students and drivers very seriously. He added that there is a lengthy training process that takes place, including taking a CDL course, several hours of driving, being shadowed, and much more.
“I would just like to thank the Madison County Sheriff’s Office and the fire department for their service and quick response. We are grateful that there was no loss of life and sad that this took place. It’s an accident and not on purpose; we just feel bad that it took place,” Lords said.