Seven students hospitalized after speeding bus goes down embankment, SC cops say
Seven students were hospitalized Tuesday after their bus crashed down an embankment, the South Carolina Highway Patrol said in a WSPA report.
Troopers said 19 students were on board the Laurens County School District 56 bus, along with driver Kenneth Launsderly, when the wreck occurred around 7 a.m., per WYFF.
According to highway patrol, the “school bus ran off the left side of the road and hit trees, then crossed back over the road, ran off the right side and ran down an embankment,” WHNS reported.
Windows at the front of the bus, on the driver’s side, were smashed, along with an emergency exit window on the left side of the bus, according to WSPA.
Laurens County Assistant Superintendent of School Operations David Pitts said seven students were taken to an area hospital, “as a precaution,” per WHNS.
There is no word on the condition of the students who were taken to the hospital.
The bus driver was not injured in the crash, golaurens.com reported. But Launsderly was “cited for driving too fast for conditions,” per WSPA.
In South Carolina, the maximum punishment for a first-time violator includes a $200 fine, 30 days in jail and a six-month suspended driver’s license, according to drivinglaws.org.
Laurens County Superintendent Dr. David O’Shields said both the driver and the bus will be replaced for Wednesday morning’s bus route, according to WHNS.
The crash remains under investigation by the S.C. Highway Patrol.
This story was originally published February 19, 2019 at 6:34 PM.
