Bradford, AR – JonesboroRightNow.com – An Empire charter bus carrying Bay School art students home from a field trip ran off the road Friday night after a tire blew on Interstate 57 between Bald Knob and Newport.
Bay Superintendent Keith McDaniel told JRN the accident happened around 9:30 p.m. as the bus was traveling north on the highway, formerly known as U.S. Highway 67.
McDaniel said the bus was returning from a day trip to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, where Bay students in grades 7 through 12 had attended an art-related visit. The trip was part of a program in which Crystal Bridges invites school art students and provides transportation and admission at no cost to the school.
According to McDaniel, the bus experienced a tire blowout in its left front tire while traveling on the interstate.
“When the tire blew, the bus reportedly lunged forward and ran off the road into a ditch,” McDaniel said.
He said the bus did not overturn.
About 20 students were on the trip, according to information provided to JonesboroRightNow.com by a parent of one of the students.
McDaniel said four students were taken by ambulance to a hospital in Searcy following the accident. One of those students was later transported to Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
He said he did not know the extent of the students’ injuries.
The superintendent said the bus driver was not injured. He also said he did not know the identity of the driver but had been told the driver was unharmed.
Several other students were reported to have suffered minor bumps and bruises.
The parent who contacted JonesboroRightNow.com said she understood the students taken to the hospital suffered injuries including ankle injuries, a knee injury and an eye injury.
McDaniel said two teachers accompanied the students on the trip. One of the teachers went with the injured students to the hospital in Searcy, while the other remained with the rest of the students.
According to the parent, the bus company sent several SUVs to pick up the stranded students and transport them back to Bay.
McDaniel said the trip had gone very well up until the accident.
“It had been a great trip,” McDaniel said. “We would appreciate prayers for those who were injured.”