No students injured in Tuesday morning bus incident
GROVELAND — North Putnam students were not hurt when a school bus was rear-ended Tuesday morning.
Bainbridge Police Officer Jes Seipel reported that at approximately 7:30 a.m., the bus driven by Joseph Conniff, 71, Fillmore, was stopped in the westbound lane of U.S. 36 near the BP station in Groveland.
Stephen Tsareff, 64, Indianapolis, was also westbound in a 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt.
Tsareff told Seipel that he looked up, saw the yellow flashing lights on the bus and attempted to stop. However, the car slid under the rear end of the bus.
Adams Towing was called to the scene to retrieve the car from under the bus, after which it was towed from the scene.
The bus, which suffered minimal damage, was then driven on to the transportation center in Bainbridge.
In the meantime, the students had been offloaded onto another bus at the scene. They were all later taken to Hendricks Regional Health in Danville for evaluation.
“As a precautionary measure, all students were transported to a local hospital to be evaluated,” the corporation announced on Facebook, adding that school personnel were working with hospital staff to check vital signs of all students.
A later Facebook statement gave the all clear: “All students have been assessed and have either been released to family members or will be returning to school. If you would like to talk with or see your child, you may do so at the school.”
Neither driver was injured in the accident. Seipel said no charges or citations will be issued.