Officials weigh crash of buses

The buses were taking fourth-graders on a field trip to Akron.
& lt;a href=mailto:leigh@vindy.com & gt;By NORMAN LEIGH & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
SALEM -- Two city school bus drivers who left the scene of an accident won't be charged by police, but school officials are still investigating the matter.
Akron police determined that the circumstances surrounding the May 7 crash did not warrant citing either of the bus drivers involved, schools Superintendent Dr. David Brobeck said Thursday.
The buses were in Akron, taking about 70 Salem fourth-graders on a field trip, when one of the buses hit the rear of the one in front of it.
None of the children on board was seriously injured. The total damage to both buses was estimated at between $5,400 and $7,800.
The lead bus had slowed or stopped suddenly to avoid hitting a vehicle in front of it, which led to the crash between the two buses on Grant Street in Akron, Brobeck said.
"It was a pure accident," he added.
Instead of the drivers' notifying police of the crash immediately, as they should have done, Brobeck said, they left the scene and continued with the field trip.
"We would have preferred that police were called immediately," Brobeck said.
Later in the day, after school officials learned what occurred, they instructed the drivers to return to Akron and report the crash.
What police decided
The fact that the accident was reported to police the same day led police to decide to forgo citing the drivers for leaving the scene, Brobeck said.
Although police are not charging the drivers, school officials are continuing to weigh disciplinary action in the crash and how its aftermath was handled, Brobeck said.
"I'm dealing with it internally," he added, saying he expects a decision on the matter to come in the next few weeks.
Both drivers remain on normal duty, pending the outcome of the inquiry.
Another issue arising from the situation is the fact that no formal effort was undertaken immediately after the crash to notify the parents of all the children involved.
A parent of one of the children complained to the school board at its May 20 meeting that she didn't know her youngster was in an accident until the fourth-grader came home and told her.
Brobeck said parents should have been told by the school as soon as possible after the accident.
& lt;a href=mailto:leigh@vindy.com & gt;leigh@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;