When parents put their children on a school bus, they feel as if they are putting their children’s lives in the hands of the bus driver. While this is normally the case, sometimes their children’s lives end up in the hands of a complete stranger because of an auto accident the bus driver could do nothing to prevent. This was the case when a bus ride turned into a catastrophe on a recent Wednesday morning in Southeast Texas.
According to reports, the collision happened while the school bus was picking up children. A student was boarding when a tractor-trailer driven by a 72-year-old man struck the bus from behind. Police say that six of the students on board were injured, but, thankfully, their injuries are not considered to be life threatening.
A few days after the accident, the driver of the tractor-trailer turned himself in to authorities and was charged with injury to a child, which is a felony. The driver could face up to two years behind bars and up to a $10,000 fine if he is convicted. It is not known if alcohol or drugs were contributing factors, and no other information about the crash has been reported.
An auto accident can be traumatizing for anyone involved, especially students who are on board a school bus. While the exact details of the students’ conditions have not been reported, they may be suffering as a result of their injuries. The parents of the injured students may choose to file personal injury claims against the driver of the tractor-trailer if they believe that a Texas court will find that his negligence led to the accident. Successfully litigated claims may result in compensation being awarded by a Texas civil court.
Source: ksat.com, “Driver charged in SE Texas school bus accident”, Nov. 9, 2014