Bus driver cited after video shows CMS bus clipping vehicle, crashing into townhome
A school bus driver was cited Friday after a video was released of a CMS bus clipping another vehicle and crashing into a townhome in north Charlotte Thursday morning.
Police say 55-year-old Lashandra Chere Williams has been issued a citation for failure to maintain lane control.
A surveillance video released Friday gave more insight into what happened moments before the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools bus crashed into the building.
Fifteen students were aboard the bus when it crashed into a townhome off Statesville Avenue near Norris Avenue, blocking all inbound lanes of Statesville Avenue just south of Atando Avenue, officials say. It happened just before 8:30 a.m.
Police say two students were taken to an area hospital as a precautionary measure but no serious injuries were reported.
Friday, a nearby business released surveillance of the bus clipping a vehicle moments before the bus crashed into the building. Police say a preliminary investigation determined that the bus left its lane and struck a 2018 Kia Optima stopped in a turn lane.
It then ran off the road and slammed into the building. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police says speed did not appear to be a factor in the crash and that both drivers were screened but no evidence of impairment was found. Williams was taken for a drug screening, per CMS policy.
According to CMS the bus, #509, was en route to Ranson Middle School when the accident happened.
Worried parents arrived in the area shortly after the crash was reported. WBTV spoke with a student, Jamiyah Jones, who was on the bus during the crash. She said she recalls the bus swerving before hitting the building and says she was shaken up and scared as the students were rushed off.
A 911 call was released from the incident Thursday night. On the call, a man was alerting police that a school bus just crashed and that it was full of children.
The bus was removed from the building around 11 a.m.
WBTV is the Observer’s news partner.