Chattanooga reeling from school bus tragedy
Bus driver charged in crash that killed five schoolchildren and injured 12 others
CHATTANOOGA, TENN.— A school bus driver was behind bars Tuesday after a crash killed five children and plunged Chattanooga into mourning over what the mayor called the “most unnatural thing in the world” — a parent losing a child.
Police said Johnthony Walker, 24, was speeding along a narrow, winding road Monday afternoon with 35 elementary school students aboard when he wrapped the bus around a tree. Walker was arrested and charged with five counts of vehicular homicide.
Reeling from the tragedy, Chattanoogans lined up to donate blood, created a memorial of flowers and stuffed toys at the crash scene and planned an evening prayer vigil.
“It’s tough on my kids because they know some of the victims as well,” said Dujuan Butchee, whose two daughters used to go to the same school as those killed in the wreck.
Police said Walker was driving well over the posted 30-m.p.h. (48 km/h) limit when he lost control of the bus.
He was jailed on $144,440.23 bail for a court appearance Nov. 29 on charges including reckless endangerment.
Whether he had a lawyer was not immediately known.
The hospital said 12 children remained hospitalized Tuesday: six in critical condition and six stable.
Dr. Darvey Koller, a pediatric emergency room physician at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger, said identifying the students after the crash was a lengthy process.
“Many of them were scared or too dazed to talk to us,” Koller said at a news conference Tuesday. “Because of their young age, many of them were unable to spell their names, did not know their birthdays or even their parents’ names — several said ‘Momma’ when they were asked what their name was.”
Hospital staff photographed each child, showing the images to teachers to figure out identities, he said.
Three of the children killed were in fourth grade, one was in first grade and another in kindergarten, Kelly said. Their families were notified, but their names were not released. All the children aboard went to Woodmore Elementary School.
“The most unnatural thing in the world is for a parent to mourn the loss of a child,” Mayor Andy Berke said. “There are no words that can bring comfort to a mother or a father. So today, the city is praying for these families.”
The National Transportation Safety Board sent a team to investigate, and police obtained a warrant to remove the bus’s black box, containing data on the vehicle’s movements.
As the investigation got underway, NTSB chairperson Christopher Hart said the agency will look at such factors as the driver’s actions, the condition of the bus and whether seatbelts — something the NTSB has been pushing for — would have made a difference.
Walker had an accident involving property damage in September, and his license was suspended for about a month in 2014 for failure to show proof of insurance, according to state commercial driver records. He ap- peared to have no criminal record in Tennessee, authorities said.
Hamilton County School District spokesperson Amy Kutcher declined to say whether the district had received any complaints involving Walker, who was employed by an outside bus contractor, Durham School Services.
“Legally, there is no way that we could discipline someone who is not our employee,” Kutcher said. “We’ve got 192 Durham bus drivers. Obviously, this is a bad one.” Durham CEO David A. Duke issued a statement on Twitter saying the company was “devastated” by the accident and working with police and school officials to investigate. Company officials did not return calls and emails seeking comment.
Last year, one driver pleaded guilty to aggravated statutory rape, and another was arrested on child-porn possession charges. Both were fired.
Durham, based in Warrenville, Ill., operates about 13,700 vehicles around the U.S. and has nearly as many drivers, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. It had a “satisfactory” safety rating from the agency in July 2015.
The company has had 346 crashes over two years, including three resulting in deaths and 142 in injuries, federal figures show. During that period, it had 53 incidents involving unsafe driving violations.
On Tuesday morning, counsellors were on hand for the students and staff as classes resumed at the school. Rev. Tavner Smith and a dozen staffers from the Venue Church went to offer support.
“It’s devastating,” Smith said. “You send your kids to school and think you’re going to see them that evening.”