APRIL 2, 2015
WETHERSFIELD, CT (WFSB)
Seven ambulances responded to a school bus crash in
Wethersfield that sent 11 people to the hospital.
Police said a First Student bus crashed into a Jeep on
Prospect Street near Maple Street around 9 a.m. Two other vehicles were also
involved, but were towed from the scene.
“It appears a bus rear-ended a jeep in front of it,"
said Lt. Andrew Power, Wethersfield police. "There was approximately seven
students on the bus."
"All of a sudden we heard a big loud noise,"
Jennifer Mueller, of Wethersfield, said.
Police also said the ambulance response was not indicative
of injuries; however, the 7- to 8-year-old students were sent to the hospital
to be reunited with their parents. They said a "mass casualty"
declaration was made, but it simply means that there are more patients than the
typical amount of resources available.
According to school officials, all seven students were sent
to Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford. None of the students were
hurt, police said.
Two patients were sent to Middlesex Hospital and one was
sent to St. Francis Hospital in Hartford. A person in the Jeep was hospitalized
for facial injuries, but police said they were minor.
The bus driver was taken to Hartford Hospital as a
precaution.
Officials said the bus was a Capitol Region Education
Council, or CREC, bus. It was headed to the Glastonbury-East Hartford Magnet
School from the Webb School.
"Police are still investigating the cause of the
accident. Student safety is CREC's first priority. We are working closely with
local officials to collect more information," CREC schools said in a
statement on Thursday.
Police said they don't know what caused the bus driver to
not stop, but they're looking into it.
"We believe traffic was stopped and we believe the bus
driver was distracted for some reason," Power said.
Police said the bus driver could face an initial charge of
following too closely.
Officials with the Department of Motor Vehicles were also
called to the scene to make sure the bus was working properly.
Prospect Street was closed from Maple Street to Longvue
Drive for a few hours during the police investigation. The road reopened
around 11 a.m.
Wethersfield public schools are on spring break this week.