Nine people were injured, including a child who was airlifted to a hospital, when a school bus and a dump truck collided Tuesday on a state highway in northeast Arkansas, authorities said.
The vehicles collided just south of Hoxie, about 120 miles northeast of Little Rock, said Arkansas State Police spokesman Bill Sadler.
The dump truck was southbound on U.S. 73 south of Hoxie when it reportedly struck the rear of a bus that was starting to turn onto a side road. The bus veered off the road and overturned, according to a state police statement.
Jurnee Taylor, a reporter with Region 8 News in Arkansas, was one of the first on the scene after the accident occurred.
Seven students and the drivers of both vehicles were injured when the dump truck rear-ended the bus, state police said. The agency said none of the injuries were believed to be life-threatening.
“All students were alert, able to communicate,” said Hoxie School District Superintendent Kelly Gillham.
Officials said one student was airlifted to a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, 78 miles to the southeast. Others were sent to hospitals in Jonesboro, Arkansas, 18 miles to the southeast. She said the students on the bus were elementary through high school age.
About the Author
