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Tennessee Bus Crash Kills 5 Students on Way Home

Tennessee Bus Crash Kills 5 Students on Way Home

Chattanooga Fire Department personnel at scene of school bus crash. (Bruce Garner/Chattanooga Fire Department via Chattanooga Times Free Press via AP)
 

By    |   Tuesday, 22 November 2016 06:47 AM EST

A Tennessee school bus crash killed five children on their way home in Chattanooga on Monday afternoon. A dozen others were injured, six of them critically.

Photos showed the bus nearly sliced in half by a tree it crashed into. Speed may have been a contributing factor, authorities told the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

Chattanooga Police Chief Fred Fletcher said the bus driver, Johnthony Walker, 24, was charged with five counts of vehicular homicide, reckless endangerment, and reckless driving.

Officials said the bus crashed into the tree about 3:20 p.m. and five children died at the scene. Authorities initially reported six deaths in the accident.

The Chattanooga Fire Department helped extricate students who were trapped in the wreckage, said The Chattanoogan.

A total of 37 students, all from 37 Woodmore Elementary School grades kindergarten to fifth, were on the bus at the time of the crash, the Hamilton County Department of Education told the Times Free Press.

"We just wanted to inform you that Hamilton County schools faced a great tragedy today," a text sent to Hamilton County, Tennessee parents read after the crash, according to WDEF-TV. "School and county personnel are on scene of a bus accident on Tally Road in Chattanooga. Extra counselors and support staff will be on hand to help students process this horrible incident."

Hamilton County mayor Jim Coppinger called the accident "heartbreaking" and called for residents to "say a prayer tonight for all involved in today's tragedy," according to The Chattanoogan.

The National Transportation Safety Board was sending officials to the site to open an investigation.

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TheWire
A Tennessee school bus crash killed five children on their way home in Chattanooga on Monday afternoon. A dozen others were injured, six of them critically.
tennessee, bus, crash
265
2016-47-22
Tuesday, 22 November 2016 06:47 AM
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