At least five children were killed on Monday afternoon when a school bus # 366 carrying nearly three dozen elementary school students overturned and c
At least five children were killed on Monday afternoon when a school bus # 366 carrying nearly three dozen elementary school students overturned and crashed into a tree in Chattanooga, according to local officials.The Hamilton County District Attorney’s office reported one additional fatality at a local hospital. About two dozen of the 35 Woodmore Elementary School students on the bus were taken to hospitals after the accident, which occurred before 3:30 p.m. about a mile from the school, Chief Fred Fletcher of the Chattanooga Police Department said on Monday night.The police arrested the bus driver, Johnthony Walker, 24, on Monday night and charged him with five counts of vehicular homicide, as well as reckless endangerment and reckless driving, the police chief said. Chief Fletcher described the accident as a single-vehicle crash. Information on the conditions of the children who were taken to hospitals are still unavailable. An earlier report from the Hamilton County district attorney general’s office had said at least six children died. Road conditions at the accident site, at Howard Avenue and Talley Road, appeared to be “clear and dry,” Chief Fletcher said. He added that officials were investigating whether speed or alcohol had played a role in the crash. “Certainly speed is being investigated very, very strongly,” he said, noting that the investigation was continuing. The National Transportation Safety Board was sending a team to investigate. Emergency crews worked for hours to remove the children from the bus. Students who were not taken to the hospital walked away “looking dazed with cuts on their faces. Hamilton County Department of Education confirms there were 37 students on board, all students at Woodmore Elementary. Support is coming from all over, the best way to support the county’s students is by allowing kids to attend school today, said Hamilton County Schools Interim Superintendent Kirk Kelly, and counselors will be available. “We will have support for our students, our staff, members of our community,” Kelly said. “We will continue to provide this support for as long as it is needed. We will do everything we can to try and help the families involved in this tragedy.”
Channel 3-
A death investigation is underway in Sequatchie County after a Cleveland man was killed while hunting over the weekend. Sheriff Ronnie Hitchcock tells Channel 3, 44-year-old Steve Wilson apparently fell from a deer stand Saturday while hunting on Lewis Chapel Mountain. The Sheriff says Wilson’s family called authorities after several failed attempts to reach him by phone. Wilson was found early Sunday morning laying beneath the stand. Sheriff Hitchcock says deputies and first-responders had to use special four-wheel drive vehicles to reach the man, due to the terrain. Hitchcock says it’s unclear if Wilson fell as he was climbing the tree or if he fell from the tree stand. The body has been sent to the Medical Examiner for an autopsy. Wilson is a former pastor of Peerless Road Church of God of Prophecy.
The Cleveland Daily Banner-
An outside firm hired by Gov. Bill Haslam’s administration agrees that privatizing maintenance work at public colleges and universities could save $35 million per year. Haslam’s outsourcing advisers and consultants have touted the outsourcing plan as a way to save money while protecting the jobs of all currently employed campus maintenance workers who are deemed to be “qualified and productive.” The outside review was conducted by KraftCPAs PLLC.
