26 Children In Overturned Bus Crash On Interstate 95 In Harford County, Maryland
A charter bus carrying 26 children and four adults overturned on Interstate 95 in Harford County, Maryland. The southbound lane of I-95 has been shut down. At least 25 people were injured in the crash near Exit 89 in Havre de Grace around 9:30 a.m. this morning.
The 26 children, three adult chaperones, and the bus driver were traveling from Charles W. Henry School in Philadelphia to Washington, D.C. on a field trip. The students on the bus were all in the eighth grade.
The reason the bus carrying 26 children crashed is not yet known. Maryland State Police have said a passenger car was somehow involved in the accident on I-95. State police spokesman Greg Shipley said another bus also traveling in the southbound lane was transporting Philadelphia Police Department recruits to Washington, D.C. for Police Week events. The recruits exited their own bus and rushed to help the victims in the overturned bus almost immediately after it crashed.
Aerial footage of the crash compiled by local reporters and shared on social media appears to indicate a white bus rolled over on the driver’s side in Harford County. Extensive damage to the front end of the bus is evident as well. Both the guardrail along the right shoulder of I-95 near the Havre de Grace exit and trees in that same area appear to be damaged as well.
The Susquehanna Hose Company told the press two of the overturned bus victims were in critical condition. First responders from multiple area jurisdictions joined forces to help deal with the Interstate 95 bus crash.
One child and one adult victim from the Interstate 95 overturned bus crash were transported from the scene by a Medevac helicopter. Both the Maryland State Police and the Delaware State Police are assisting with the Harford County I-95 charter bus accident.
.@AACoFD @AFDco2MD @CecilCountyDES @HdGAmbulance @wbaltv11 @MDSP @DEStatePolice 95 u/d
Triage & treatment ongoing
Land transports have begun
Many Fire & EMS Companies assisting
NB 95 has reopened
SB remains blocked 89-93 pic.twitter.com/pqY7PozfAq— Susquehanna Hose Co. (@SusquehannaHose) May 15, 2017
The injured child was flown to the Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in New Castle, Delaware. The adult bus crash victim was flown to the Shock Trauma medical facility, which is a part of the University of Maryland Medical System.
The University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Medical Center is preparing to receive up to 10 “priority 3” patients from the Interstate 95 overturned bus accident, Baltimore CBS Local reports. The University of Maryland Harford Memorial Hospital in Havre de Grace is reportedly expecting to receive up to 15 patients falling under the same medical care priority level.
Patients labeled a priority three typically are suffering from broken bones and minor injuries. Some patients from the I-95 bus crash were reportedly transported to the Christiana Hospital in Delaware.
The overturned bus involved in the crash on Interstate 95 was operated by the Werner Coach (Werner Bus Lines) charter bus company, according to a report by the Baltimore Sun. The company is based in Pennsylvania. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Commission gave the company a satisfactory rating in 2015, the last year of its rating.
Werner Coach has reportedly been involved in two previous crashes. One occurred along Interstate 95 in Delaware in February of this year. The other crash happened last October in Pennsylvania. Neither of the two crashes caused injuries to either passengers or the drivers, but the buses did have to be towed away from the scene.
Werner Bus Lines owns three mini-buses and 24 standard buses. The Pennsylvania company drives more than two million miles per year and employs 38 drivers. Werner Coach buses have been inspected 58 times in the past 24 months and been cited for 61 violations. While most of the citations were written for maintenance issues, some of the violations involved prohibited actions by drivers. Drivers using mobile electronic devices while driving and traveling more than the 10-hour driving limit were reportedly the cause of some of the violations.
[Featured Image by Pixelaway/Shutterstock]
