OCEANSIDE, CALIFORNIA – Seven students from El Camino High School, as well as a bus driver, were injured Wednesday when a car collided with a school bus. The impact sent the school bus onto its side. One of the injured students was airlifted to a hospital as a precaution. The rest were taken by ambulance to two local hospitals. Some of the students appeared to have suffered broken bones in the accident. The accident happened just before 11:30 a.m. on North El Camino Real. A traffic alert was issued in the area for clean up and investigation.
According to Oceanside Police Sergeant Jeff Brandt, a white Toyota Camry driven by an 82-year-old woman had pulled onto El Camino Real from Laguna Vista Mobile Home Park. The car was driving parallel with the northbound bus in a turn lane when the woman merged into the vehicle and caught the rear wheel of the bus. Brandt said it looked as though the car merged right under the bus and sent the bus out of control. A set of the bus wheels went over the top of the car, leaving tread marks on the hood of the car.
Steve Lombard, a spokesman with the Oceanside Unified School District, said the students from the high school are transported to local elementary schools for a class period or two to help tutor the kids in math and reading. Lombard said the bus was on its way from San Luis Rey Elementary School and was heading to Reynolds Elementary School to pick up some students who had been tutoring there when the bus was struck by the car. The California Highway Patrol has identified the bus driver as Karen Sohayda. According to the authorities, the injured students suffered bumps, bruises, scrapes and broken bones. However, none of the injuries are thought to be life-threatening.
Our thoughts are with the students injured in this accident. We hope that everyone injured in this accident will make a full recovery. Berman & Riedel, LLP is a plaintiff’s personal injury law firm in San Diego, California. Our lawyers are licensed to take cases throughout the state.
If you have been injured in an accident caused by a reckless or negligent third party, you may be able to recover expenses related to your recovery process from the wrongful party. The lawyers at Berman & Riedel, LLP are happy to set up a case consultation to discuss your options with you free of charge.
