WASILLA – A Mat-Su school bus carrying nine elementary school children slid off the road in icy conditions Tuesday morning, rolled onto its side, and landed on the front lawn of a Wasilla home.
No children were seriously injured in the crash, which occurred at 8:36 a.m. during morning school pickup, Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District spokesman John Notestine said in an interview.
Bus 33 was headed to Machetanz Elementary School, Notestine said. The crash happened near the intersection of Southview Drive and Scotty Circle off Old Matanuska Road near Walmart. The children were transported to school after emergency responders evaluated them for injuries, he said.
The students' parents and guardians were notified following the accident, said officials with Summit School Services, the parent company of district bus contractor Durham School Services.
"We are very thankful that only minor injuries were reported, and no one needed to be transported to the hospital," Summit School Services spokesperson Anna Lam said in a statement.
All school buses in the area were running on a normal pickup schedule Tuesday morning after district officials determined roads were safe for bus use, Notestine said.
A winter weather advisory issued by the National Weather Service late Monday warned of rain and freezing rain in the area from 5 a.m. to noon Tuesday, with icy conditions creating a light glaze. Travelers were advised to “slow down and drive with caution.”
The Anchorage School District was closed Monday due to unsafe road conditions.
Mat-Su district officials said they make closure or delay decisions on a region-by-region basis after reviews of hyperlocal road and weather conditions.
Notestine said an early Tuesday survey of conditions in Region 2, which includes parts of Wasilla and Palmer, showed it was safe to put buses on the road. But officials made a last-minute decision to delay start times in Region 6, which includes Talkeetna, because roads there were becoming dangerous, he said.
“We had reports of pretty solid roads in Region 2,” he said. “Obviously, the first priority is safety – but then trying to get as many kids in school learning as possible, as safely as possible. This morning, it was a tricky situation. That weather moved in really late.”
School weather delays or cancellations must be made by about 6 a.m. when buses first leave for their routes, he said.
Roads near the crash site were extremely icy, said Allana Lumbard, a nearby resident who experienced the ice firsthand while driving her daughter to daycare and then saw the bus on its side.
“I saw the bus coming down Old Matanuska and thought, ‘Great, I hope he’s not going in our neighborhood,’ as I had just slid through the stop sign,” she said. “Sure enough – came back and there it was.”
Notestine said he received reports of other buses slipping or sliding Tuesday morning, but the Bus 33 crash was the only major incident. Parents should keep their kids home if they believe travel conditions are unsafe, Notestine said.
“Parents always have the choice to keep their students home if they don't feel the roads are safe,” he said. “That is a parental choice, and those absences will be excused.”
-- Contact Amy Bushatz at contact@matsusentinel.com
This story was originally published by the Mat-Su Sentinel and is republished here with permission.
