“The darkest day”: Ohio high school laments the deaths of a teacher, parents, and band members in a multicar collision.
The superintendent of Tuscarawas Valley Local Schools said that an Ohio high school is in sorrow for three students, two parent chaperones, and a teacher who perished in a multivehicle incident Tuesday morning while en route to a “once in a lifetime” performance with the school band.
About 20 miles from their goal in Columbus, a charter bus carrying over 50 kids and chaperones got caught in a blazing mid-morning crash on Interstate 70 in Etna, state authorities said.
By CNN’s Raja Razek and Elizabeth Wolfe
Tuscarawas Valley Schools football stadium in Zoarville, Ohio hosts a community prayer vigil on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023, during which students stroll across the football pitch. Earlier in the day, a lorry rear-ended a charter bus carrying high school kids on an Ohio highway, resulting in several fatalities and injuries.
At Tuesday’s community prayer vigil held at the Tuscarawas Valley Schools football stadium in Zoarville, Ohio, students are seen walking over the pitch.
During a vigil held Tuesday night in Zoarville, Ohio, Veransky said, “Today started as an exciting day as our high school band would travel to Columbus to present at the Ohio School Boards Association conference-a once-in-a-lifetime event-and then it quickly turned into the darkest day, one of the darkest days in our district’s history and the worst day of my life.”
The superintendent described the youngsters who passed away as “bright lights full of life who lost their lives way too young.”
The National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said on Tuesday that the accident involved five vehicles: two passenger cars, the student charter bus, a tractor-trailer, and another commercial motor vehicle.
According to Homendy, the NTSB has been provided with “conflicting information about the sequence of events” in the incident. She also stated that the agency will start its investigation at the spot on Wednesday am.
During the vigil, district director of operations Mark Murphy stated that two of the district’s band directors, Merri Gensley and Stephen Tripp, performed the heroic deed of helping students get off the bus “one-by-one.”
Information regarding the total number of casualties has fluctuated. Eighteen people, including the bus driver and 15 pupils, were sent to hospitals, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Twenty of the children in the school district were reportedly hospitalised. According to the district, as of Tuesday night, just two pupils with critical but non-life-threatening injuries were still in the hospital.
According to the state patrol, the drivers of two additional vehicles were also sent to nearby hospitals.
District schools opened on Wednesday, according to Veransky, who added that staff and children are free to stay at home if they so want.
“Our doors will be open because we don’t want any kids at home by themselves,” he declared. “This won’t be your normal school day. Numerous counsellors and support personnel from different local organisations will be present.
Governor of Ohio Mike DeWine referred to the tragedy as “the worst nightmare that families can endure” and commanded that flags be flown at half-staff in remembrance of the victims on government facilities in Tuscarawas County and the capitol.
Andrew Dolph via AP (Times Reporter) a high in Ohio