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No students seriously hurt in SC crash involving school bus, logging truck

LANCASTER COUNTY, S.C. — The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating a serious multi-vehicle crash that happened Monday afternoon in Lancaster County involving a school bus and a logging truck.

[PHOTOS: School bus, logging truck involved in Lancaster County crash]

The collision happened around 2:40 p.m. on SC Highway 9, also called Pageland Highway, at the intersection of Clyburn Drive.

Emergency crews told Channel 9 none of the students onboard were seriously hurt.

Bus 59, which was carrying 15 Buford Elementary School students, was stopped with its stop arm deployed to let students off, according to the Highway Patrol. A Kia SUV was stopped behind the bus, and another vehicle was stopped in the opposite direction.

Investigators said the logging truck hit Kia behind the school bus, slamming it into the bus. The impact caused the bus to cross the highway and hit the vehicle that was stopped facing the other direction, troopers said.

The Kia was pushed to the side of the road and overturned.

Someone standing at the bus stop waiting to pick up their child was hit by flying debris from the wreck, officials told Channel 9.

The logging truck continued off to the side of the road and hit several trees before it stopped.

Two of the 15 students on the bus, along with the bus driver, were taken to the hospital for minor injuries, troopers said.

Three people in the other vehicles were also injured, and at least one of them was flown to a hospital with serious injuries, officials said.

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A motorist told Eyewitness News he is frustrated about drivers who don’t pay attention.

“A school bus has lights on it that was stopped to drop somebody off or discharge or pick up somebody, Ken Carulli said. “Obviously, the lights were on.”

Highway 9 was shut down for more than three hours as troopers investigated.

The Lancaster County school district sent officials and another bus for the children who were not hurt, according to officials.

About 100 gallons of diesel fuel spilled during the crash, emergency crews said.