Hit-and-run crash causes Lancaster Mennonite school bus to overturn, injuring 15 students, 1 critical, in East Lampeter Township, PA

LINDSEY BLEST | Staff Writer
May 17, 2017 Updated May 17, 2017
 

Police say more than a dozen people were injured after a hit-and-run driver caused a four-vehicle crash involving a Lancaster Mennonite school bus Wednesday morning in East Lampeter Township.

East Lampeter Township Police Chief John Bowman said 14 students and the bus driver were taken to Lancaster General Hospital. The driver of another car was also injured.

Lancaster General Health spokeswoman Mary Ann Eckard said students taken to LGH were between the ages of 7 and 16.
Eckard said three students were trauma patients and the rest of the injuries were minor.

Just before noon, Eckard said 12 students, the bus driver and the driver of another vehicle were discharged from LGH.
An 8-year-old boy is "very seriously hurt," district attorney's office spokesman Brett Hambright said late Wednesday afternoon.

The boy was airlifted from Lancaster General Hospital to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

Another student was transferred to Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Eckard said. That child's condition was not available.

The crash happened just before 8 a.m. on Lincoln Highway East just east of Route 896, according to Bowman.

Police described the accident as a hit-and-run and are looking for the driver of the car that left the scene.

Bowman described the car as a white sedan, possibly newer, with front end damage. Bowman said the male driver has short hair. Police have no license plate information.

"There’s a very good possibility that this vehicle, as it was traveling eastbound prior to the accident scene, may have been passing other vehicles," Bowman said.

Bowman said the eastbound car tried to pass a tractor-trailer carrying an over-sized load and the rig's escort car, also traveling east. It hit the escort car and set off a "chain-reaction accident," Bowman said.

The escort car hit the tractor-trailer and then the westbound school bus, he said. The impact caused the bus to roll, pinning one child underneath, officials said.

The bus was carrying 12 high school students, one middle school student and one Locust Grove elementary student, according to Lancaster Mennonite spokesman Gary Hiller.

The students had been picked up at four locations in Chester County, and the bus was going to drop them off at the main campus at 2176 Lincoln Highway East, about a mile from the accident.

Police said late Wednesday afternoon they were continuing to search for the driver of the sedan and said they will provide an update on the investigation Thursday morning. Anyone with information should contact East Lampeter Township police at 717-291-4676.

An email describing the crash was sent to Lancaster Mennonite school parents, Hiller said.

"Our focus has been on the physical and emotional well-being of our students rather than the cause and who is responsible," Hiller said. "We express concern for the two who are still in the hospital."

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6-year-old boy 'struggling for his life' after school bus crash; police searching for driver

• By EMILY SHAPIRO
• WILL GRETSKY

May 18, 2017, 12:00 PM ET

 

15 students hospitalized after school bus crash in Pa.

Police near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, are searching for a driver who authorities say set in motion a crash that tipped a school bus on its side, sending 16 people to the hospital and leaving a 6-year-old boy "struggling for his life." 

Police said four vehicles were involved in the Wednesday morning crash: a tractor trailer, an escort vehicle for the tractor trailer, the missing car and the school bus. 

Police said the unknown driver hit the back of the escort vehicle in East Lampeter Township, about 65 miles west of Philadelphia. The escort vehicle was then pushed into another lane, side-swiping the school bus. 

The collision tipped the bus on to its side and trapped one student underneath; the student was transported to the hospital via helicopter, police said.

WPVI

Students and a bus driver were hospitalized after a school bus crashed in East Lampeter Township , Pa., May 17, 2017.

Fourteen students, the school bus driver and the driver of the escort vehicle were hospitalized, a Lancaster General Hospital spokesperson said. Both adults and 12 of the students have since been released, a hospital spokesperson said today. 

The remaining two students have been transferred to other hospitals for further treatment. 

A 6-year-old boy is considered a critical patient with serious injuries, officials said. While the patient had "some improvement," Lancaster County District Attorney's Office spokesman Brett Hambright said this morning the boy is still "struggling for his life." 

A 16-year-old boy is expected to be released from the hospital today, officials added.

WPVI

Students and a bus driver were hospitalized after a school bus crashed in East Lampeter Township , Pa., May 17, 2017.

Police are looking for the missing driver who "essentially set this crash into motion," Hambright said. 

The missing car appears to be a light-colored sedan, possibly a white Chevrolet Malibu, Hambright said. The front of the vehicle could be damaged, he noted, adding that the car may also have driver's side damage. Surveillance video from a business captured an image of what is believed to be the wanted car.

Hambright said authorities want to speak with the driver. 

"That side of the story is very important to us," East Lampeter Township Police Chief John Bowman said. "It's pretty much all hands on deck to locate the vehicle and hopefully have a conversation with the driver." 

Bowman said the police department has received a large number of tips and he encouraged anyone with information to come forward. 

The students involved in the crash were from the Lancaster Mennonite School, police said. 

The Lancaster Mennonite School said in a statement on Facebook this morning, "Thank you for your prayers as our school community continues to heal, physically and emotionally, from Wednesday’s bus accident." 

"Several pastors are at the Locust Grove Campus today having prayer with the students," the school said. "School is operating normally, although prayer and support will be infused throughout the day. School counselors are available, as always, to help in times of crisis."

Motorcycle thefts are on the rise, and California, for the second year in a row, is the top state for stolen bikes.

Motorcycle thefts are on the rise, and California, for the second year in a row, is the top state for stolen bikes.

The annual theft report from the National Insurance Crime Bureau shows bike thefts rose 2% nationally in 2016. A total of 46,467 motorcycles were reported stolen, up from 45,555 in 2015.

A shocking number of them disappeared in California, where 7,506 motorcycles were reported taken — compared with 4,482 stolen in Florida and 3,692 in Texas, the next most troublesome territories.

Los Angeles was the fourth-most-plagued city, after New York, San Diego and Las Vegas, while Los Angeles County was the top county.

The NICB study revealed that the bulk of motorcycle thefts occur during the summer months, when more bikes are on the street and when more people enjoy riding.

August was the top month, when almost twice as many motorcycles were reported stolen than in December or January.

Not in California, though, where warmer weather allows for year-round riding and stealing. In the Golden State, thefts remain more or less constant through all four quarters.

Some bikes are more popular targets than others — or are simply easier to steal. Here are the top major brands whose bikes are most likely to be stolen; a disproportionate number are Japanese manufacturers.

• Honda
• Yamaha
• Kawasaki
• Suzuki
• Harley-Davidson
• KTM
• Ducati
• BMW

The recovery rate for stolen bikes isn’t encouraging, according to the NICB report. Only about 18,000 of the 46,467 motorcycles reported stolen in 2016 were returned to their owners. The NICB report didn’t say what condition they were in when they came home.

The recovery rate in California, however, was higher than the national average. About 42% of stolen bikes here found their way back to their owners.

The New York rate, at 19%, was the lowest in the nation. (The highest: Hawaii, at 94%. It may be harder to hide a bike on an island than elsewhere.)

By brand, Hondas were recovered at a higher rate than any other. Honda owners had about twice as good a chance of getting their bikes back than owners of Ducatis, which had only a 29% chance of coming home.

1 female pedestrian killed, at least 22 injured when drunk/drugged Navy Vet driver Richard Rojas, 26, jumped the curve in Times Square and plowed through a crowd of pedestrians

One person was killed and at least 22 were injured on Thursday when a car careened through Times Square and plowed through a crowd of pedestrians in one of New York City’s most congested corridors, officials said.

The 26-year-old driver appeared to have been either drunk or impaired by drugs and had been arrested twice for drunken driving, officials said. The preliminary evidence indicated that the episode was not terrorism-related, officials said.

“Based on information we have at this moment, there is no indication that this was an act of terrorism,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a news conference Thursday afternoon in Times Square.

The conditions of the injured victims was not known.

Witnesses described the horror of seeing the car traveling at high speeds through the neighborhood, which was packed with tourists, workers and many others on a sultry afternoon, and the mayhem in one of the world’s busiest and most famous plazas immediately evoked fears that it had been a deliberate act. 

Annie Donahey, 24, had just left work on Seventh Avenue between 42nd and 43rd streets when the car, a maroon Honda, sped past her and slammed into pedestrians on the sidewalk.

“It was going at a fast rate of speed and to me it looked like it was trying to hit as many people as possible,” she said. “People were trying to jump out of the way.”

The exact route traveled by the car was not immediately known before it came to rest at the northwest corner of 45th Street and Broadway. The Honda sat tilted on bollards, its right wheels off the ground, its front hood crumpled and trunk open, as detectives and investigators canvassed the area. Photo

The police responded to an injury after a vehicle struck pedestrians in Times Square in New York on Thursday. Credit via Reuters

A few blocks away, Sharif White, who sells T-shirts and hats on the corner of 44th Street and Seventh Avenue, stood next to the body of a woman on her back on the sidewalk, who was surrounded by paramedics.

“It hit her,” he said, pointing to the woman. “And it hit a couple of other people. Then the next thing I know it went straight down to 45th. It just was doing like about 100 miles per hour and then the car crashed.”

The car’s bumper sat on 44th and Seventh in the middle of the sidewalk.

Magdy Tawfik, a hot dog vendor near the corner, said the car had struck three people there.

“The car sped through here, it was moving so fast, and it crushed all these people,” he said.

A Police Department spokesman said the driver of the car had been taken into custody. The law enforcement official said the driver was from the Bronx. The police had taped off many of blocks around Times Square.



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TIMES SQUARE — A Navy vet with a history of drunk driving jumped the curb in the middle of crowded Times Square and sped along the sidewalk, killing one young woman and leaving at least 22 people hurt before being tackled and arrested, officials said.

Richard Rojas, 26, who officials said had two prior arrests for drunk driving, was driving southbound on Seventh Avenue when he pulled a U-turn at West 42nd Street and veered north onto the sidewalk on Broadway just before noon, officials said.



As panicked tourists dove for cover, he plowed his maroon 2009 Honda Accord through several blocks of pedestrians on the sidewalk before crashing to a halt against a metal stanchion near the George Abbott Way pedestrian plaza south of the TKTS booth, according to officials.

"Bodies were flying, he was running over people, it was like nothing I’d ever seen," said Julie Fallo of Hoboken, who was visiting in Times Square with her daughter and niece. "Everyone thought it was a terrorist attack and ran into buildings screaming. People were trying to get off the street... he never slowed down. He gunned it right into the people. He looked like he accelerated."

"There was bodies everywhere, flying left and right."

There were at least 22 people hurt, including four people who were taken to area hospitals in critical condition, FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said.

An 18-year-old woman was killed, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio, who spoke at a press conference from the scene. Her 13-year-old sister was also injured in the crash, according to Assistant Chief William Aubry.

Rojas tried to make a run for it before being tackled by several good Samaritans and an NYPD traffic enforcement agent, Aubry said.

Police led Rojas, a Navy vet with a criminal record, in handcuffs through Times Square and put him into a police SUV, and took him to Midtown North police precinct for questioning, officials said.

The mayor said the calamity did not appear to be related to terrorism.

Out of an abundance of caution, bomb-sniffing dogs were brought to the scene just after 12:15 p.m. and the entire stretch of Seventh Ave. between 42nd and 57th streets was closed in both directions.

The streets and sidewalks were full of tourists during the unseasonably warm temperatures.

Kelly Graves, 54, of Wisconsin, who was visiting NYC on vacation, said she was near the Disney store on Broadway between 45th and 46th streets when she heard a crash.

"We saw groups of people lying on the sidewalk on the next block over, also in front of the car we saw a Gray Line ticket person laying on the ground with police surrounding him. he was injured. all of a sudden the car caught on fire. The police made us get back," Graves said. "People screamed, they were running away... it was total chaos."

Witnesses said they were afraid the crash may have been an act of terrorism.

"One of the cops said we should get back because they didn't know if there was a bomb," said Alex Ashton, 21, visiting from Georgia with her mother.

The cause of death for all 7 victims from Monday's house fire in Akron, OH is smoke inhalation.

The cause of death for all seven victims from Monday's house fire in Akron is smoke inhalation. The autopsies showed no non-fire related trauma.

The Summit County Medical Examiner has identified two of the people involved in the fatal house fire in Akron.

• Dennis Huggins
• Angela Boggs

The other five victims will be identified through DNA testing which will take some time to complete.

Many of the seven bodies found after a fatal fire on Fultz Street were huddled together near a window on the second floor, according to the Akron Fire Department.

The Summit County Medical Examiner's office said all of the bodies were found on the second floor.

Authorities have not officially identified any of the victims yet, but 18-year-old Brittany Boggs said the victims are her mother, Angela Boggs, her mother’s boyfriend Dennis Huggins, and her siblings: 14-year-old Jared, 6-year-old Daisia, 5-year-old Kyle, 2-year-old Alivia, and 1-year-old Cameron. Auditor's records list Angela Boggs and Dennis Huggins as the homeowners.

Brittany has set up a GoFundMe account to pay for funeral expenses.

"I lost everything and everyone I had," she said.

Autopsies are being conducted and the examiner's office is doing dental record testing for several of the bodies. Dental records are not available for all of the victims because of their young age.

This fire ties for the most deadly fire in Akron's history with seven fatalities, according to Akron Fire Chief Clarence Tucker. A growing memorial of balloons was started at the scene.

"My brothers and sisters were everything to me," said Brittany, who lives with her grandmother in Sandusky. "Even though they annoyed me, they kept me going. Me and my mom were dysfunctional, but I still loved her. We had a typical mother-daughter relationship. I thought I was right even when I was wrong."

She said she moved out three months ago because her mother's boyfriend kicked her out.

She said investigators told her they suspect arson.

The state Fire Marshal's Office has wrapped up its on-site work. No official cause has been announced.

Patrick Boggs, the estranged husband of Angela Boggs, was interviewed by the Akron Police Department, but he is not considered a person of interest at this time in connection to the fatal fire, authorities said. Akron Lt. Rick Edwards said Patrick Boggs has not been charged with anything related to the fire at this time, but he is currently being held in a Portage County jail for an unrelated parole violation.

Prestige Gunite Inc., concrete contractor employee critically injured from lightning strike as he was pouring concrete for a pool at Ocean Breeze Park, FL construction

MARTIN COUNTY, FL —



A worker was critically injured Wednesday from a possible lightning strike near an Ocean Breeze Park construction site, according to the Martin County Sheriff's Office and Fire Rescue.

Deputies responded to a call of a man down and possibly struck by lightning shortly before 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at a construction site near the 3000 block of North East Indian River Drive, said sheriff's Detective Sgt. Karl Nelson and Laurie Weber, media relations assistant.

Six co-workers at the scene performed CPR on the man until emergency medical services crews arrived, Nelson said. The man, 46, works for Prestige Gunite Inc., a concrete contractor based in Fort Pierce and was pouring cement for a new pool at the construction site.

The man was taken by ambulance to Martin Medical Center with critical injuries, said Nelson and Fire Rescue spokesman Chris Stabile. Further details on the man were not available.

The Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident.

The construction manager is Bayview Construction Services, LLC.  They are in charge of building the following projects:  

Ocean Breeze Administration Building

Ocean Breeze Maintenance Building

Ocean Breeze Spa, Fitness and Recreation Center

Bayview Construction Services

Bayview Construction is one of the leading general contractors and a national award winning company in construction and safety, located in Florida's Research and Treasure Coast region. Bayview has been creating relationships and providing quality construction services to clients throughout Florida, from the east to the west coast for 35 years, since 1978.

A state-licensed certified general contractor, Bayview has extensive experience ranging from fine custom homes and estates to multi-million dollar commercial and industrial projects.