Was School Bus Trying To Make Illegal U-Turn Before Rt. 80 Crash?

MOUNT OLIVE, NJ — Authorities are investigating the possibility that the school bus involved in Thursday's fatal crash was making an illegal U-turn when it was hit by a dump truck on I-80, according to media reports.

The school bus was taking fifth-grade students from East Brook Middle School in Paramus to the historic Waterloo Village in Stanhope for an end-of-the-year field trip. It was one of three traveling in a caravan, officials said, but was the only one involved in the crash.

Investigators told NBC 4 that video footage from a Department of Transportation camera shows the bus cutting across lanes of traffic to attempt an illegal U-turn through an area for emergency vehicles. The video reportedly shows the dump truck slamming into the bus as it attempts to get onto I-80 eastbound.

The bus involved in the crash was apparently the only one to miss the exit for Waterloo Village, where the school field trip was being held, ABC 7 reports. The other two buses safely reached the destination, only to head back to school minutes later when word arrived about the deadly crash.

Officials have not yet spoken to the driver of the bus, who underwent surgery following the crash, NBC 4 says.

Morris County Prosecutor's Office declined to comment to Patch on the specifics of the investigation Thursday morning.

In a preliminary report released Thursday night, New Jersey State Police said the bus got on I-80 west from southbound Route 206, and collided with a dump truck near milepost 25.1, just past Exit 25.

It's not clear why the bus would have taken southbound Route 206 to travel from Paramus to Waterloo Village in Stanhope. Online directions say the fastest route from Paramus to Waterloo Village is to take I-80 West to Route 206 North.

NJ.com reports that for the bus to have pulled onto Route 80 from Route 206, the crash would have had to have happened as the bus was still on the on-ramp for the crash to take place at mile marker 25.1.

The crash between the bus and the dump truck caused devastating damage, breaking the bus into three pieces. A student and a teacher were pronounced dead, and 43 of the 45 people on the bus were taken to nearby hospitals with injuries.

The identities of the student and teacher who died were not released, pending notification of family, Gov. Phil Murphy said during an afternoon press conference. However, multiple media reports and social media tributes say it was social studies teacher Jennifer Williamson who was killed.

Many of those taken to the hospital were in critical condition on Thursday, with several undergoing surgery. Murphy declined to elaborate on the types of injuries.

Read More:

• Teacher, Student Confirmed Dead In Paramus Field Trip Bus Crash
• Paramus Student Recounts Chaotic Bus Crash Scene
• Community Starts #ParamusStrong Hashtag In Wake Of Fatal Crash
• Paramus District Cancels Trips Following Fatal Crash

Image: Emergency personnel work at the scene of a fatal Paramus school bus crash on Interstate 80 in Mount Olive Thursday morning. (By Avi Gibli, used with permission)