On Sunday, a bus belonging to Mount Zion Baptist Church in Texas was involved in a single-vehicle accident in Harris County, resulting in injuries for almost all of the passengers.
As per reports, the bus driver, who was a volunteer, was driving too fast and was unable to navigate a turn, causing the bus to flip onto its right side.
In a social media post, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez from Harris County Sherrif’s office revealed that the bus contained three adults and 12 children ranging in age from 1 to 16, with some other sources initially stating that there were 16 passengers on the bus.
When the incident occurred, residents living in nearby apartments rushed to help and 14 of the passengers were taken to hospitals for treatment. The bus driver, however, was not hurt.
According to Jennifer Guerra, who resides in the area, her family was having breakfast when they heard the bus overturn. When they went out to the balcony, Guerra called 911 and could hear children yelling for help.
“We just, you know, heard a big boom and when we got to the balcony, I called 911,” Jennifer Guerra told KPRC-TV. “And that’s when I was like, I heard screaming, the kids yelling help, help.” Guerra joined forces with some other kind-hearted individuals and helped the passengers exit the bus.
@HCSOTexas units responded to a crash at an apt complex located at 90 Uvalde. Preliminary: a small church bus, with about 25 persons on-board, including children, flipped over. Most are being transported to area hospitals; one person said to be critical. #HouNews pic.twitter.com/EiaWvRb4HK
— Ed Gonzalez (@SheriffEd_HCSO) December 11, 2022
“I’ve never seen anything like that. I’m just happy that they were okay, and they got help and everything was in God’s hands they were okay. Guerra told KPRC 2 Click2Houston “We sat them down and gave them water and basically tried to calm them down. Let them know that everything was going to be okay.”
According to Sheriff Gonzalez, the arrival of law enforcement units was met with confusion as there were numerous children on the scene. This made navigating the area somewhat challenging at first. However, the officers were able to quickly respond and bring stability to the situation, despite the initial chaos.
Update: the driver (42) operated the passenger bus. The bus was occupied by 3 adult passengers and 12 child passengers, ranging from one year old to 16 yrs old. The driver failed to control speed while negotiating the curve causing the bus to roll on its right side. The 1/3 https://t.co/m4EiVzd8YQ
— Ed Gonzalez (@SheriffEd_HCSO) December 12, 2022
Sheriff Gonzalez tweeted in an update. “[T]he driver (42) operated the passenger bus. The bus was occupied by 3 adult passengers and 12 child passengers, ranging from one year old to 16 yrs old. The driver failed to control speed while negotiating the curve causing the bus to roll on its right side.”
According to Jennifer Guerra, the location where the accident took place is a problematic area that is familiar to the community. Many accidents have happened there due to drivers going too fast while taking turns. Guerra’s husband even mentioned the need for speed bumps to prevent future incidents, as there are children and school buses in the area.
Let us know what you think about this story in the comment section below.
