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School Bus Collision Injures Eight

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Eight students are in area hospitals with minor injuries after two school buses from Batesville collided Tuesday in North Little Rock.

They were on their way to a field trip at the State Capitol when one bus slowed for traffic and the bus behind it failed to stop.

The Arkansas State Police are handling the incident.  Batesville Superintendent Randy Willison has kept families informed.

"The last total I've seen was eight students have been transported to Children's Hospital. Primarily for preventative [care] and for observations. All the parents, all the students who have been injured, they've notified the parents," Willison said.

"The parents know and they are on their way to the hospital. The rest of the students have been loaded on school buses from the Pulaski County Special School District and are on their way home."

Officials will be investigating the possibility and degree of driver error with video recorded from cameras on each bus.

Willison addressed challenges bus drivers can face on unfamiliar roads and the possibility of error.

"Anyone who has ever driven in Little Rock knows that sometimes traffic just becomes so congested it comes to a stop. I have witnessed myself many accidents where vehicles were unable to stop in time. I will see if it's a matter of the driver making an error in judgment or something that was unavoidable. In any case, I'm really sorry that students were injured. That's my biggest concern," Willison said.

He hopes to reschedule the trip and give the students the opportunity to learn about the State Capitol.

"I would hate for the students to miss out on such a great opportunity to see the Capitol and experience some of the history of Arkansas. We'll have to wait and see."

Jacob Kauffman is a former news anchor and reporter for KUAR.
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