Fresno School Bus Crash Involving Intoxicated Driver Injures Six Students

Six students suffered minor injuries after a Fresno school bus accident occurred the morning of April 7 at a stop sign at the intersection of Belmont and Brawley. A Fresno Bee article reports that the 53-year-old female motorist who struck the bus from behind has been arrested for driving under the influence of narcotics.
After the rear-end bus crash, the students from the Central Union High School west campus were transported to Community Regional Medical Center. The female intoxicated driver was also hospitalized. According to the California Highway Patrol (CHP), 50 students were onboard the bus at the time of the collision.
School bus drivers receive thorough training and are responsible for doing everything possible to keep children safe. Unfortunately, there is only so much that even the most experienced and attentive bus driver can do to prevent an accident involving an intoxicated or drunk driver.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) notes that an estimated 19 school-aged children are killed in school-related transportation accidents per year, with five of these children being occupants in school transportation vehicles and the other 14 being pedestrians. Since 1998, 1,564 individuals have been killed in school bus accidents, amounting to approximately 142 school bus crash-related fatalities each year.