South Fulton County

Driver in critical condition following serious wreck with school bus

By Carl Willis
By Carl Willis

SOUTH FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — A crash involving a school bus left several children with minor injuries Wednesday afternoon.

Authorities told Channel 2 Action News there were 13 students on a school bus when a car crossed the center line and slammed into it.

A witness shot cellphone video as first responders cut a car open to rescue a driver.

“It was so quick I can't even believe it," business owner Van Anderson said.

Anderson said her employee and her brother, Richard Moore, were following behind her Wednesday afternoon when their Toyota Scion collided with a school bus, leaving a mass of crushed metal and shattered glass.

"They were all tucked in the car, mangled up. The jaws of life had to cut them out. Right now, they're unconscious. They're not doing well and we need everybody to pray right now," Anderson told Channel 2's Carl Willis.

Atlanta Public Schools confirmed the bus was carrying students from Therrell High School at the time.

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According to the Atlanta Fire Department, two students were taken to a hospital.

But APS said none of the students nor the bus driver was seriously injured in the wreck. That's a surprise to those who saw the aftermath of the crash.

"Chaos with the kids running off the bus and the driver being cut out of the vehicle," one witness told Willis.

"I was crying and running down the street, (yelling), ‘Not my brother. Not my brother," Anderson said.

Anderson's brother, the passenger in the Scion, is conscious and being treated at Grady Memorial Hospital.

But the driver remains in critical condition. Anderson claims the bus driver veered out of her lane and into oncoming traffic.

“She just ended up crossing over, but it was a fast crossover,” Anderson told Willis. “No brakes.”

But Atlanta police say that based on witness reports, the driver of the Scion was at fault.

Students were taken home on another bus or picked up by parents following the wreck.

"The safety and security of students and staff is a top priority for Atlanta Public Schools, and we are grateful that all students and staff involved in the accident are safe," Atlanta Public Schools Media Relations Manager Seth Coleman told Channel 2 Action News.

Cox Media Group

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