1 person airlifted, 10 others injured after school bus overturns in North Carolina
One person was airlifted to a hospital, and ten others sustained non-life-threatening injuries after a school bus overturned in North Carolina on Tuesday morning, officials said.
The North Carolina State Highway Patrol told USA TODAY the incident happened around 7:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday after the driver of the Burke County school bus "lost control, ran off the right side of the road, struck a ditch, and overturned," before coming to a rest on its top.
Nine children and two adults were on the bus at the time of the crash.
One of the adults on the bus became partially entrapped in the bus and had to be evacuated by a medical helicopter to Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte in serious condition.
The nine kids were taken to various local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, and the driver was also taken to the hospital with minor injuries, NCSHP said.
Police said the 51-year-old bus driver was cited for failure to maintain lane control.
The bus operates as handicapped transportation and services multiple schools in the Burke County District. Burke County Public Schools did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment and more information.
In statements to local outlets, the school district said at least five of the students had been released after being evaluated or treated for injuries.
“We are grateful that except for some bumps and bruises, the students involved in this morning’s bus incident are doing well,” Burke County Public Schools superintendent Mike Swan said in a statement to WBTV. “We will continue to provide support to them as they heal physically and emotionally. We also are grateful that the bus driver’s injuries appear to be minor as well. Our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to the bus monitor and her family.”