School bus crash sends 18 to hospital

AUSTIN (KXAN) - A wreck involving a Del Valle school bus sent 17 students and another person to the hospital Friday morning, but all injuries appeared to be minor, officials said.

In all, four ambulances were requested and 52 people were aboard the bus at the time, including the driver.

The crash occurred near Ross Road and Pearce Lane down the street from Del Valle Middle School.

Police said that a sport-utility vehicle struck a another vehicle, which they hit the school bus. The two girls in the vehicle struck by the SUV were sisters and were on their way to Del Valle High School when the wreck occurred. One of the sisters - the driver - was not a student.

They along with 16 students on the school bus were taken to Dell Children's Hospital. The remaining students went on to school.

Salvador Pieda, the father of sisters in the crunched car, said his daughters were taken to the hospital as a matter of prudence.

"They need to make sure, because the younger one hit the glass with her head. They want to know what's going on."

Celina Bley, the spokeswoman for the school district, said officials were contacting parents Friday morning.

"We did have students who went back to school, so we want to make sure this doesn't come as a surprise to them that there was an accident this morning," she said.