The school bus involved in deadly crash on a New Jersey highway reportedly made an illegal turn before colliding into a dump truck Thursday.
According to CBS News, officials said the bus was en route to Waterloo Village from East Brook Middle School in Paramus when the driver had missed an exit and attempted to make an illegal U-turn moments before the wreck.
Despite this development, it’s currently unclear whether the driver will face criminal charges.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, at least two people—a student and teacher—died when a school bus and dump truck crashed Thursday on Route 80 near exit 25 in Mount Olive Township.
The fifth-graders at the middle school were headed to the historic district for a field trip. The Paramus school district has canceled all field trips for the rest of the year, according to CBS.
NJ.com has since reported that the fifth-grade teacher killed Thursday was Jennifer Williamson, 51.
“My beautiful bride and I have been in total love every day of our lives since the day our eyes met on May 5th, 1994,” husband Kevin Kennedy said in a statement issued to the news outlet.
“I am in shock, devastated and totally crushed by today’s tragedy to both sides of the Williamson-Kennedy families, the community she taught and the thousands of students and their families she was very proud to serve.”
CBS News reported that 43 people were hospitalized in connection with Thursday’s deadly crash. Among the injured was a child who was reportedly placed in a medically-induced coma.
A student aboard the bus told the Associated Press that he believed something hit a vehicle behind the bus. He recalled hearing a “scraping sound” before the bus “toppled over.” Furthermore, Mount Olive Mayor Rob Greenbaum told HLN that people were possibly ejected from the bus during Thursday’s crash.
New Jersey state police and the Morris County prosecutor’s office are currently investigating the crash.
[Featured image: Chrissy Oleszek via AP]
