Driver injured after being hit by Tri-City school bus in busy intersection
One person was injured Tuesday afternoon in a two-vehicle collision that included a Kennewick school bus at the corner of Clearwater Avenue and Morain Street.
Officers responded to the wreck around 2:48 p.m., said Kennewick Officer Ashley Marshall. The driver of a sedan was transported to Trios Health for an injury.
Kennewick’s traffic unit is still conducting an investigation of the incident, and should be finished at the end of the week. The cause of the crash has not been determined.
Paramedics arrived and found the sedan blocking the southern portion of the intersection at the northbound Morain lane. CCTV video posted to Facebook shows the bus driving southbound through the intersection along Morain and striking the sedan traveling east on Clearwater. The bus did not appear to have the right of way. Another video also shows fire crews attempting to pry open the car to retrieve the driver.
There were 14 high school students and one driver on board the bus, Kennewick School District administrators said in a statement. None were injured.
“Following the collision, most students were picked up by family members, and others were safely transferred to another bus to complete their route home,” the statement read. “In accordance with district protocol following a collision, involved staff are required to complete post-incident drug and alcohol testing. Employees return to their duties only after being cleared by Human Resources to resume work.”
Washington State Patrol’s Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Bureau is also conducting its own investigation of the crash.
