Vehicle hits TCU bus, results in fatality - UPDATED
This story was updated at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday with the name of the crash victim.
A 57-year-old New Prague woman died on Tuesday morning, Dec. 15, after her car was rear-ended, causing her to hit a TCU school bus that had been picking up students south of Montgomery.
On Wednesday morning, the Minnesota State Patrol released the name of the victim, Debora J. Trowbridge.
As a result of the accident, a large portion of Highway 13 from Highway 21 to Highway 99 was closed for several hours.
According to a memo from TCU Superintendent Teri Preisler to parents, TCU Bus 6 was hit south of Montgomery at 380th Street at approximately 7:23 a.m. There were no injuries to any of the students on the bus Preisler noted.
Preisler said the bus, driven by Art Jindra, 78, was stopped to pick up students with its lights flashing to indicate to other vehicles the need to stop. The woman’s car, a 2005 Ford Focus, was heading south on Highway 13 and stopped for the bus when another vehicle, a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado driven by Bradley Bosma, 29, rear-ended her.
Preisler and the Minnesota State Patrol said the impact caused the Focus to sideswipe the front driver's wheel on the bus. Preisler said there was no other contact with the bus, and that all students and Jindra were okay.
Bosma, of Mankato, was traveling with Noah Bosma, six, also of Mankato. Both of those individuals received non-life-threatening injuries.
Will Shippman, a junior at TCU High School, had gotten on the bus at a previous stop and witnessed the crash.
“I saw both vehicles. I was sitting in the middle of the bus and it was stopped to pick up a kid. The kid hadn’t gotten on yet when we were hit,” he said. “The bus shook and I saw the car and the truck pass by.”
Preisler, who came on the scene, said the students remained on the bus and were checked by officials, who determined there were no injuries.
“I spoke with the students as they were safely transferred to another bus to be brought to school. They shared that they were okay,” she said in a statement.
Principals, counselors, and social workers also met the students as they arrived at school. Preisler noted that school staff had been notified so they were able to provide any support that students needed.
Authorities say weather was not a factor in the accident.
According to Le Sueur County Sheriff Dave Tietz, the State Patrol investigation into the accident is not complete. When it is, Tietz said, the information will be turned over to the county attorney’s office for review and possible charges.
Montgomery Fire, Ambulance and Police, the Le Sueur County Sheriff and Minnesota State Patrol responded to the scene.
Original story posted on 12-15-2015 at 9:50 a.m.
A two-vehicle crash involving a TCU bus has resulted in a fatality, according to the Minnesota State Highway Patrol.
According to a text from the TCU District to parents on Tuesday morning, TCU Bus 6 was hit by a car a couple miles south of Montgomery at 380th Street. There were no injuries to any of the students on the bus, the text noted.
In a report from the Minnesota State Highway Patrol that is on the scene, officers classified the accident scene as a fatal one. No other information is available at the time.
More will be posted as it becomes available.
