Minor injuries reported after school bus crash near Brantford

Two people have been injured in a school bus crash that occurred Tuesday afternoon just north of Brantford, Ont., police say.

Police said at the time of the crash there were only two occupants onboard the vehicle, a 13-year-old and the driver.

“Both individuals have been transported to hospital to receive treatment for non-life-threatening injuries,” police said in a news release.

Police said initial information indicates the bus rolled over.

In a tweet posted at 4:44 p.m. Tuesday, police said officers are on scene of the collision at Park Road North and Governors Road East.

Area roads were closed for several hours for the investigation. The intersection reopened to traffic shortly after 11 p.m. Tuesday.

Brantford Fire Chief Scott Pipe said he can’t comment on specifics of the crash, but said two pumpers responded to the scene to assist police and EMS.

He said fire crews have cleared the scene.

WITNESS REACTS

Lisa Hadall, a witness who saw it all unfold, told CTV News that she was heading into St. George when she noticed people running from their vehicles to help people trapped inside a school bus.

“The guardrail was completely wiped out, and there was an embankment about 20 feet, so everybody was hopping over the guardrail, climbing down the embankment, and then there was a barbed wire fence. So, that was knocked down. People were running over the barbed wire fence. When I got there, the bus was flipped on its roof,” Hadall said.

Hadall called it a miracle that the injuries appeared minor.

“There were a bunch of men tending to the student in the wheelchair because she was stuck. So they were breaking windows and trying to free her. She was quiet. You couldn’t hear anything. She was totally fine,” Hadall said.

Hadall said she was trying to help the driver of the bus who appeared to be injured.

“She was suspended upside-down, so she was wearing a seatbelt, but she was suspended in the air, so it was getting uncomfortable for her," hadall said.

Hadall said she went to try to prop her up so she wasn’t so uncomfortable, and noticed the driver was bleeding from a cut she had on her head.

"She said her head had hit the windshield," Hadall said.

"Other than her head, she was very coherent and didn’t seem to have any other injuries,” said Hadall.

Hadall claimed all of this happened before emergency crews responded to the scene, with fire crews taking over to help the driver trapped in her seat.

Meanwhile, the Brantford Police Service is seeking information from anyone who may have witnessed the collision.

Any witnesses who have not yet provided information to officers, or anyone with information or footage of the collision is asked to contact the Brantford Police Service at 519-756-0113.