Ohio Charter Bus Crash: John W. Mosely, Jeffery D. Worrell, and Katelyn N. Owens among the Six Dead in Tragic Collision

Accident – Death – Obituary News : ETNA, Ohio (AP) — A team from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is set to begin their investigation into a tragic highway crash in Ohio that claimed the lives of six people and left 18 others injured. The crash involved a charter bus filled with high school students and occurred on westbound Interstate 70 in Licking County, approximately 26 miles (42 kilometers) east of Columbus. NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy stated that the team will be searching for any potential evidence, such as cameras, from the five vehicles involved in the accident. Their presence in the area is expected to last between five to seven days, and a preliminary report will likely be released within the next few weeks.

According to Homendy, there is conflicting information regarding the sequence of events that led to the chain-reaction crash, which also involved an SUV and a semitruck. The charter bus, operated by Pioneer Trails, was transporting students and chaperones from the Tuscarawas Valley Local School District in eastern Ohio. Tragically, three passengers on the bus, identified as John W. Mosely, 18, of Mineral City; Jeffery D. Worrell, 18, of Bolivar; and Katelyn N. Owens, 15, of Mineral City, were pronounced dead at the scene, as reported by the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

The students and chaperones were en route to an Ohio School Boards Association conference in Columbus, which has since been canceled upon learning of the crash. The conference, known as “the second-largest education convention in the nation,” was set to provide professional development sessions for school district management teams and showcase innovative school programs at the annual Student Achievement Fair.

During a community prayer vigil held on Tuesday night, Tuscarawas Valley Superintendent Derek Varansky expressed the district’s profound grief, describing the day as one of the darkest in its history and the worst in his life. The community is rallying together to honor the lives lost and support the survivors who will carry the trauma of the experience. Varansky confirmed that classes would be held the following day, with additional counselors and support staff from various community organizations present to offer assistance.

In addition to the fatalities on the bus, all three occupants of one of the other passenger vehicles involved in the crash—a teacher and two chaperones for the student trip—also perished. They were identified as Dave Kennat, 56, of Navarre; Kristy Gaynor, 39, of Zoar; and Shannon Wigfield, 45, of Bolivar. The driver of the second passenger vehicle was transported to a hospital for treatment. As for the drivers of the commercial vehicles, one was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, while the other received treatment at the scene, according to the highway patrol.

The collision resulted in the closure of both sides of Interstate 70 for several hours, causing significant traffic delays in the area. Thankfully, the eastbound lanes were reopened late Tuesday afternoon, and the westbound lanes were reopened early Wednesday.

One student, Tori Wilson, a sophomore at the school, shared her harrowing experience of being on the bus when it was struck. She recalled hearing someone mention a fire and the urgency to escape, but she found herself trapped. Wilson recounted the distressing scene, stating, “I had a kid like over top of me having a seizure and not moving… unresponsive. I had my friend beside me to my right, that was sitting right to where I was, where I was gonna sit, but she said that I could have the inside towards the window. And all I could see was her head and the rest was all crushed underneath seats.”

Despite the bus being engulfed in flames, the junior high band director repeatedly returned to the vehicle, rescuing students and pulling them to safety. Wilson managed to free herself by climbing out of a window and escaping the wreckage.

This tragic incident involving high school students on a charter bus is the second fatal crash of its kind in the United States in recent times. In September, two individuals lost their lives and several others sustained injuries when a charter bus carrying high school students to band camp veered off a highway in New York.

In response to such accidents, Ohio’s Republican Governor Mike DeWine established the School Bus Safety Working Group in August. The group was formed following a devastating incident in which a minivan collided with a school bus in Clark County, resulting in the death of an 11-year-old Northwestern Local Schools student. The minivan driver has since been charged with vehicular homicide. The Working Group, scheduled to convene again next Thursday, will address various aspects of school bus safety, including training and on-bus instruction. Their final meeting is slated for December 1, and recommendations are expected to be released by the year’s end. While it remains uncertain how charter buses transporting students will be addressed in the group’s report, Tuesday’s tragic crash will undoubtedly be acknowledged during the upcoming meeting..