A team from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is set to begin their investigation into a tragic highway crash in Ohio that claimed the lives of six people and left 18 others injured. NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy announced that the team will be examining the five vehicles involved in the crash, including the charter bus carrying high school students. The NTSB team is expected to be on site for around five to seven days, with an initial report to be released in the coming weeks.
Homendy expressed that there is conflicting information regarding the events leading up to the chain-reaction crash, which also involved an SUV and a semitruck. The charter bus, operated by Pioneer Trails, was transporting students and chaperones from the Tuscarawas Valley Local School District. The NTSB will provide further information during a news conference scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol confirmed that three passengers on the bus, identified as John W. Mosely, Jeffery D. Worrell, and Katelyn N. Owens, tragically lost their lives at the scene. The bus was en route to an Ohio School Boards Association conference in Columbus. In light of the crash, the conference canceled its final day. The event, which offered professional development sessions and a Student Achievement Fair, was deemed the second-largest education convention in the nation.
Superintendent Derek Varansky from Tuscarawas Valley expressed his grief and described the incident as one of the darkest days in the district’s history. He emphasized the need to support the families of those who perished, as well as the surviving students who will carry the trauma with them. Despite the tragedy, classes were held the following day, with additional counselors and support staff from community organizations available to assist students.
The crash also claimed the lives of three individuals from one of the other vehicles involved: high school teacher Dave Kennat, and parent chaperones Kristy Gaynor and Shannon Wigfield. Wigfield was also a teacher at Buckeye Career Center. The driver of the other passenger vehicle was hospitalized, while the drivers of the commercial vehicles sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Two students remain hospitalized with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. The crash resulted in the closure of both sides of Interstate 70 for several hours, causing significant traffic delays. The eastbound lanes were reopened late Tuesday afternoon, while the westbound lanes reopened early Wednesday.
One student, Tori Wilson, described the chaos and her struggle to escape the bus after it was hit. She recalled seeing a fellow student having a seizure and being unable to move due to the crushed seats. Eventually, Wilson managed to escape through a window. The collision marks the second fatal crash involving high school students on a charter bus in recent months.
Following a previous school bus crash, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine created a School Bus Safety Working Group to address safety concerns. The group is set to meet next week to discuss training and on-bus instruction. The final report and recommendations are expected by the end of the year, and it will likely acknowledge the recent crash during the meeting.
The NTSB’s investigation into the Ohio crash will provide crucial insights into the sequence of events and help prevent similar incidents in the future.
