A crash involving multiple school buses in a Chicago suburb left 11 students injured and hospitalized on Tuesday morning.
NBC Chicago reported that Illinois State Police said at least three school buses were involved in the incident in Grundy County. Eleven students were reportedly transported to area hospitals with minor injuries.
Context
The crash reportedly took place just after 8:30 a.m. on northbound Interstate 55 at milepost 246 in Grundy County with only minor injuries being reported.
In an emailed statement to Newsweek the Illinois State Police said all three school buses were headed northbound when one of the school buses was unable to stop in time and struck the rear of another bus causing it to hit the rear of the third bus.
"Units 1, 2, and 3, all 2024 Yellow IC School Busses, were traveling northbound in the right lane as traffic slowed to a stop. Unit 1 was unable to stop in time and struck the rear of Unit 2. Unit 2 struck the rear of Unit 3," Illinois state police said.
What We Know
According to NBC Chicago, the students were taken to area hospitals with Morris Hospital confirming two students were transported to their hospital, none in serious condition, while Silver Cross Hospital said four patients were transported to their emergency room.
Meanwhile, Braidwood Police Department said, additional school buses were called to the scene "to aid in relocation," which took place at The Loves Truck Stop on the east side of I-55, for the remainder of the students with all students successfully relocated just before 10:30 a.m.
"We are relocating kids of off interstate 55 to a remote crash site (a local gas station off of I-55) so the Illinois State Police can complete their Traffic Crash Investigation. Once the Illinois State Police have completed the investigation the children will be returning to Reed Custer Middle School. There will be a large police presence at the Middle School to assist with reunification," Braidwood Police said in a Facebook post.
Shortly after 11 a.m. Braidwood police said all students were safely transported back to Reed Custer Middle School as the Illinois State police continue their investigation.
"All students who were on Interstate 55 are arriving safely back to Reed Custer Middle School. There will be no further updates from the Braidwood Police Department on this matter as the traffic crash is being investigated by the Illinois State Police," Braidwood Police said in a Facebook post.
Newsweek has reached out to Braidwood Police via email for comment.
Views
Although no serious injuries or deaths were reported on Tuesday. It is not unusual for school buses to be involved in crashes resulting in the injury or even death of students.
According to the National Safety Council (NSC), School bus-related crashes killed 104 people nationwide in 2022, down 3.7 percent compared to the 108 deaths in 2021, according to the NSC tabulations of data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
In April, a school bus flipped over on a North Carolina highway trapping the bus monitor partially underneath the vehicle until rescue workers freed her. Officials said nine students were injured in the incident.
Meanwhile, in March, Illinois had a similar incident with a school bus resulting in the death of three preschoolers and two adults after a school bus and semi-truck crashed in Rushville, Illinois.
What's Next?
All lanes of traffic have been re-opened, Illinois State Police said telling Newsweek "The Unit 1 driver was cited for Failure to Reduce Speed to Avoid a Crash."
Update 05/21/24, 1:15 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 05/21/24, 1:45 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 05/21/24, 1:55 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
About the writer
Natalie Venegas is a Weekend Reporter at Newsweek based in New York. Her focus is reporting on education, social justice ... Read more
