Children taken to hospital for checkup after bus accident
By Nick Hiltunen
Published in News on May 21, 2009 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/BOBBY WILLIAMS
An early morning accident on Royall Avenue sent both drivers, along with 27 students from Dillard Academy Charter School, to Wayne Memorial Hospital to be checked for injuries.
An accident involving a school bus and two other vehicles this morning injured two motorists, but the two dozen schoolchildren involved were not hurt, Goldsboro police said.
Police Capt. Al King said the Dillard Academy bus was traveling west on Royall Avenue a little after 7:30 a.m. when it was struck in the rear by a Ford Explorer that failed to stop when the bus halted at the railroad tracks north of Center Street. Then, a van behind the Explorer failed to stop and ran into the back of the SUV, the captain said.
Charges were expected to be filed against both drivers, but King did not have access to their names before the newspaper's deadline.
"At the railroad tracks, the school bus came to a stop, as it's mandated to," King said. "There was an Explorer behind the bus that did not stop and ran into the bus. Then, there was a van behind the Explorer that failed to stop and hit the back of the Explorer."
The police captain said the 20-plus elementary-age children showed no visible signs of injury after the crash.
"There were no injuries reported on the bus. They sent some more transportation out there to pick the children up -- I'm not real sure about destination.
"I think the school was going to have them checked out (at the hospital) to make sure they're OK. But there were no injuries reported on the scene."
King said investigation was continuing and that charges would be filed against both drivers.
Danielle Baptiste, the assistant principal at Dillard, also said there were no injuries among the children aboard the bus. She called the accident "unfortunate," but said school officials were happy that it was not any worse.
She said some of the children were already on their way back to class, while others had been picked up by their parents.