School bus crashes on its side near Bonner Springs; many injured

BONNER SPRINGS, Kan. — A school bus carrying 36 sixth grade girls from Pembroke Hill turned on its side Wednesday afternoon when the driver lost control near Southbound K-7 and K-32.
A crash report from the Kansas Highway Patrol said that the passenger side tires of the vehicle left the roadway. The driver applied the breaks and attempted to steer it back on to the roadway when the rear end slid sideways and down the embankment. The bus subsequently landed on the passenger side.
After the injured had been taken to hospitals, authorities reported the total number of injured students was 22, the driver was also seriously injured. The driver was identified as Elmer Scott Jr., 66, by the Kansas Highway Patrol. He was taken to Overland Park Regional Hospital.
Johnson County Fire said when they arrived at the scene, four of the injuries were considered serious, five were considered moderate injuries and the rest were minor. Scott Jr., was the most seriously injured and had to be cut out of the bus.
The children were all sixth graders from Pembroke Hill School off State Line Road. They were on a field trip to Tall Oaks Camp in Linwood, Kan.
The patients were taken to four hospitals including Providence Hospital, Children’s Mercy, The University of Kansas Hospital and Overland Park Regional, where the bus driver was taken.
Parents were asked to go to Bonner Springs High School (near 138th Street and K-32) to pick up their kids who were not taken to a hospital. Lt Rick Schubert with Bonner Springs Police estimated between 50 and 60 non-injured children were taken there. There was a second bus carrying sixth grade boys also headed to the campgrounds for the field trip. It was not part of the crash.
The ramp from southbound K-7 to K-32 was closed for nearly two hours to clear the scene and reopened at about 3:45 p.m.