An accident involving a semi-truck and school bus in Hart County, Kentucky, sent 16 children and three adults to the hospital on Nov. 3. A police report indicated a tractor-trailer bumped a Louisville Collegiate School bus traveling on Interstate 65 to Mammoth Cave National Park for a field trip.

The trucking accident caused the bus to veer off the interstate and sent it careening down a 75-foot embankment. At the base of the hill, the bus spun and then tipped onto its side. All 19 people on the bus were taken to local hospitals and treated for injuries such as bruises and broken bones.

Following the crash, the 39-year-old bus driver insisted that a tractor-trailer passing the bus had swerved into the bus' lane and clipped the bus' front bumper. The students on the bus corroborated the driver's story, witnesses said.

Police officers initially said they could not find evidence another vehicle hit the bus, and did not believe the bus driver's story. However, the final police report said investigators found white paint from another vehicle on the left front fender of the bus.

According to the police report, the accident occurred as both the semi-truck and school bus were heading south on Interstate 65 near the 54-mile marker. As the semi-truck attempted to pass the Louisville bus in the left lane, the truck's trailer swung into the right lane and hit the front end of the bus.

It was raining when the accident occurred, and the tractor-trailer driver did not stop. The police report said the driver may not have known the bus had been clipped as the impact caused limited damage to the bus.

State police called off the search for the tractor-trailer a few hours after the accident. A state police spokesman said the passengers on the bus could not provide a clear description of the truck.

As this accident shows, semi-trucks can become dangerous weapons on the roads when they are not operated carefully. Even slight impact with a semi-truck can be deadly because of their sheer size and weight. Luckily, it appears that the victims in this trucking accident will fully recover.

Source: Louisville Courier Journal, "State police report says Collegiate bus struck by truck," Joseph Lord, Nov. 10, 2011.