Missouri School Buses Crash, Kill 2 and Injure as Many as 50

Aug. 5, 2010 — -- Two school buses loaded with children from a band camp collided with a tractor trailer on a Missouri highway today, killing two people and injuring as many as 50 others.

The crash occurred at approximately 10:15 a.m. when a tractor with no trailer was rear-ended by a pickup truck, according to Sgt. Dan Crain of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. It is believed that the tractor had slowed due to construction on the highway.

Katherine Shaelford, driver of the first school bus carrying the camp's female members, had taken her "eyes off the road" to check her mirrors so she could shift into the left lane when she failed to notice the accident, said Crain. That bus then crashed into the pick-up truck, pushing it up and over the tractor.

The second bus carrying the male campers, driven by Kelly McCennis-Mullenix, then struck the first bus, pushing it on top of the tractor and the pick-up truck.

The student who was killed in the crash has been identified by a relative as Jessica Brinker. According to Corporal Jeff Wilson of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Brinker was sitting in the last seat of the first bus, the point at which the second bus crashed into the first. Brinker had celebrated her sixteenth birthday on June 30.

In a Facebook page dedicated to Brinker, a friend posted, "She was the most funniest girl to be around!! always rockin the knee high sock...we love you Jessica R.I.P."

Crain said the second fatality, believed to be male, was the driver of the pickup truck. The driver of the tractor has been taken to a hospital for observations.

"The vehicles are all attached to each other, we're attempting to pull them apart now," said Crain.

When the vehicles were pried apart, the pickup truck was so badly crushed that it was barely recognizable as a truck.

"It was just, evacuate, get away from the scene," said Kolby Griffith, who played cymbos in the band, describing the scene after the accident.

The students, high schoolers from John F. Hodge High School in Missouri's St. James High School District, were members of a band. Griffith's father, Rocky, described the group as tight-knit, having played together for years.

Joy Tucker, the superintendent of the St. James school system, said the entire town was devastated.

"It's been a horrible, horrible day in our community, and we'll never get over this," Tucker said.

The posted speed limit on Interstate 44 is 70 mph. Crain said it was not yet clear how fast the drivers were going and whether they had been speeding at the time of the accident.

Only eight of the victims had injuries serouis enough to warrant taking an ambulence to a hospital, said Crain.

It was the last day of band camp and the children were on the annual end-of-camp trip to a Six Flags amusement park when the collision occurred about an hour from the school.