A South Carolina school bus struck a student and crashed into the front of a nearby store after failing to make a turn on Tuesday morning.
According to reports out of North Charleston, South Carolina, the bus was headed to North Charleston Creative Arts Elementary and had several students on board when the accident occurred just before 8 a.m. local time.
School bus crashes into S Carolina store; 7 sent to hospital https://t.co/9lbZAOYen8 pic.twitter.com/6J9DG2067E
— The Associated Press (@AP) September 20, 2022
According to investigators at the scene, the bus driver had been attempting to turn from Luella Avenue onto Montague. When they failed to do so, the bus struck a 15-year-old pedestrian — who was reportedly waiting for a bus to a nearby high school — before crashing through the front wall of the nearby Neighbor Store.
The Neighbor Store was closed at the time of the accident, and no one was inside, North Charleston Assistant Fire Chief Christan Rainey told local news outlets.
Another teenager who was also waiting on the sidewalk was injured when a tree branch was knocked loose by the bus. Both teens were treated for non-life-threatening injuries at MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital.
In addition to the two North Charleston High School students, four of the eight elementary school-aged children on the bus were also taken to a local hospital, where they were treated for minor injuries. The bus driver was reportedly taken to the hospital as well. Officials have not yet released any additional details about the driver.
Police are still investigating the cause of the crash, but they have voiced concern that any available video evidence may turn out to be either unhelpful or unusable.
There are cameras located on the bus, but they face into the vehicle and can likely only show what may have happened inside the bus prior to the crash. There were at least two cameras positioned on the street outside the Neighbor Store, but reports indicate that they may have sustained damage in the crash.
Fire crews were finally able to stabilize the building’s facade and remove the bus by mid-afternoon.
The investigation is still ongoing, and authorities have yet to determine whether any charges will be necessary.