Monroe Township school bus and dump truck collision injures 14

A five-vehicle chain-reaction crash involving two dump trucks and an elementary school bus occurred on North Tuckahoe Road in Monroe Township, Gloucester County, on Thursday afternoon. The collision took place shortly before 4 p.m., during the third day of the new school year for Oak Knoll Elementary School.

According to police, a northbound dump truck failed to notice traffic that had stopped for an uninvolved school bus. The truck struck a passenger vehicle containing an adult and three children, pushing it into another car. That vehicle was then propelled into a school bus carrying nine students and two adults. The bus subsequently rear-ended a second dump truck.

Twelve children and two adults were transported to local hospitals for evaluation. Authorities reported that by Thursday night, all injured parties had either been released or were in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries. One child had to be freed from a vehicle by firefighters. The two dump trucks involved are owned by the same company, which is cooperating with the ongoing investigation. Counselors will be made available at Oak Knoll Elementary School to support students.