Taking her eyes off the road for a few seconds was enough for a 25-year veteran school bus driver to overturn the vehicle in a ditch with 52 students on board, her superintendent said.
Dr. Keith Moore wrote on the Crosby ISD website that the crash that occurred Friday afternoon apparently occurred after Brenda Armster looked up at the bus rearview mirror to ask students if any of them had a scheduled stop coming up. Moore explained that Armster was a substitute driver that day for the particular route.
Armster and 16 students were transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. They were all later released.
The district posted the video on its website but the video has since been taken down. But numerous news outlets have broadcasted it.
“Those few seconds of distraction were apparently enough to cause Ms. Armster to fail to see the truck stopped on FM 1942 in the process of making a left turn,” he added. “When Ms. Armster did see the truck, she was too close to stop and instinctually pulled the bus to the right to avoid a collision.”
FM 1942, wrote Moore, has a narrow shoulder and deep ditches. When Armster pulled the bus to the right, it slid and overturned onto its right side.
A video posted by the district shows the moments before the crash, then Armster ask the students about the stop and the resulting crash.
