School bus crashes, lands on side in Arizona, injuring students, closing major highway
It's unclear what caused the crash northwest of Tucson, but it left several students seriously injured and closed Interstate 10 in both directions
A school bus crash near the southern Arizona city of Tucson has left several students from a different part of the state seriously injured and closed a major interstate.
The Arizona Department of Transportation told Paste BN that Interstate 10 was closed in both directions around milepost 240 in Marana and that "there is no estimated time to reopen the highway." Marana is just northwest of Tucson on the way to Phoenix.
The cause of the closure was confirmed to Paste BN by Northwest Arizona Fire District officials. A spokesperson said the crash happened near an exit of the interstate.
“We are transporting multiple patients with varied levels of injuries. Traffic is delayed on 1-10 near Tangerine as we continue to work with our partners to provide care for those involved,” officials said.
In a post on Facebook, the Kingman Unified School District, which owns the school bus involved, informed families of the crash.
“We want to inform our families that a bus carrying Kingman Unified School District #20 FBLA students and three chaperones was involved in an accident on I-10 near Tucson,” the post said. "Thankfully, there are no fatalities, but several students and a staff member have been transported for medical evaluation."
The school district said students attending Kingman High School and Lee Williams High School were inside of the bus that crashed.
Kingman is in northwestern Arizona, about 290 miles northwest of Marana. It's unclear why the students were in southern Arizona.
“Our thoughts are with everyone affected, and we appreciate your patience and support during this time,” the school district said.
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for Paste BN. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.