by Geoff Fox
A school bus carrying 18 Hancock students back to the school was involved in a minor accident on Interstate 70 last Friday, March 7, near the I-70 and I-81 interchange.
The bus was headed back to Hancock from Boyd J. Michael, III Technical High School when it was sideswiped by a tractor trailer.
According to Tech High Principal Robert Stike, the side mirror of the truck clipped the bus and broke one of the bus windows.
No injuries were reported in the incident.
In a message sent to parents and obtained by the Hancock News via Washington County Public Schools, Stike said both the truck and bus safely pulled to the shoulder of the road after the incident.
Police were contacted and a WCPS Transportation Supervisor responded to the scene.
Students confirmed to WCPS officials they were able to contact a parent/guardian or other responsible adult to alert them they would be delayed in returning to Hancock.
“Students were transferred to a substitute bus for the remainder of the trip to Hancock,” Stike said in the email.
A follow up email was sent to parents on Monday afternoon, March 10, after WCPS had received concerns from parents regarding the incident.
“Our first and more important priority in any bus accident is ensuring students are safe,” WCPS officials said in the email.
After the initial review by the driver, any first responders who are dispatched to the scene as well as a supervisor from the WCPS Transportation Department assess the safety.
Should there be any injuries, staff works to see students are treated appropriately.
“Above all, we are so fortunate no one was injured in Friday’s accident,” officials said.
The next priority is ensuring parents and families are notified of the accident and informed their children are safe. The Transportation Department staff typically communicates that based on a list of students who are in the WCPS bus routing system.
In the follow up, WCPS stated the accident last Friday was unique that it involved a “hub bus” that transport students from their home schools, in this case Hancock, to other schools around the county, such as Tech High.
Because they transport students from various schools, these buses are not routed with a specific list of students.
Because the bus in the accident was a hub bus, WCPS asked students to make initial notifications to families.
This particular hub bus brings students back to Hancock from Tech High and then take home students enrolled at Hancock Middle-Senior High School and attend there for the day.
“Because of this, staff was concerned a message to parents whose students were not on the bus could result in confusion and unnecessary worry,” officials said. “With this knowledge, the Transportation supervisor who responded to the scene asked students to notify their families that the bus was involved in a minor accident and everyone was safe.”
All students were juniors and seniors, and WCPS had confidence in their ability to make contact with their families. The Transportation supervisor on scene confirmed to WCPS officials all students were able to reach a family member.
Once staff had additional information about the incident and a list of students on the bus, WCPS officials said Stike was able to communicate with families of the involved students.
Officials said it was the responsibility of the Tech High principal, which is where the student attends school daily, not the student’s home school.
WCPS has learned there was a delay in the student list being shared with the Public Information Office team, which was assisting school staff with the communication to families. WCPS has identified multiple staff that should receive that information in the future to help mitigate any delay.
Parents of Tech High students were asked to pick up students at Hancock Middle-Senior High School due to the bus being delayed.
Alternatively, WCPS could have transported those students to their homes by repeating their routes in the community with the Tech High students.
Strategies could also be implemented to improve communication with Transportation staff at the bus depot location and provide additional support, officials said.
A meeting between WCPS leadership staff, Transportation supervisors, Safety and Security staff, and law enforcement personnel has been scheduled to take place this week to debrief from the accident and identify additional areas for improved response.