Tennessee school bus crash kills six children

A bus carrying elementary students home from school in Chattanooga, Tennessee, crashed on Monday afternoon, killing at least six children and sending nearly two dozen to a hospital with injuries, authorities said.

The driver, identified as Johnthony Walker, 24, was taken into custody and faces five counts of vehicular homicide, reckless endangerment and reckless driving charges, USA Today reported.

Chattanooga Police said earlier on Twitter the driver was being questioned and was cooperating with investigators.

Speed appeared to have contributed to the crash, Chattanooga police chief said.

Five children were found dead inside the vehicle, which normally carries 35 passengers, and a student died at a hospital, said Melydia Clewell, spokesperson for the Hamilton County District Attorney’s office. The students were in kindergarten through fifth grade, she said, which would make them roughly aged between five and 10.

Clewell said two or three children who were in hospital “could go either way.”

Federal transportation investigators were also opening a probe into the crash, and planned to send a team to Chattanooga on Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board said.