Six People Dead and 18 Injured in Ohio Charter Bus Crash, Including John W. Mosely, Jeffery D. Worrell, and Katelyn N. Owens

Accident – Death – Obituary News : Tragic Charter Bus Crash in Etna, Ohio Claims Six Lives and Injures 18

ETNA, Ohio — A devastating accident occurred on an Ohio highway on Tuesday morning when a semitruck collided with a charter bus carrying high school students. The collision resulted in the deaths of six individuals and left 18 others injured, according to officials.

The crash involved five vehicles, including a Pioneer Trails charter bus carrying students and chaperones from the Tuscarawas Valley Local School District in eastern Ohio, stated Sean Grady, the Licking County Emergency Management Agency Director.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol reported that three passengers on the bus, including the driver, lost their lives at the scene. They were identified as John W. Mosely, 18, of Mineral City; Jeffery D. Worrell, 18, of Bolivar; and Katelyn N. Owens, 15, of Mineral City.

During a news conference at the scene, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine expressed his condolences, stating, “This is our worst nightmare, when we have a bus full of children involved in a crash. Prayers go out to the families, everyone who was on the bus.”

A total of 15 students and the bus driver were transported to area hospitals, while other students were taken to a reunification site, officials confirmed.

Tragically, all three individuals in one of the passenger vehicles involved also lost their lives. They were identified as Dave Kennat, 56, of Navarre; Kristy Gaynor, 39, of Zoar; and Shannon Wigfield, 45, of Bolivar.

The driver of the other passenger vehicle was taken to a hospital, while one of the commercial vehicle drivers was also hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. The second commercial vehicle driver received treatment at the scene, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

The crash took place on westbound Interstate 70 in Licking County, approximately 26 miles (42 kilometers) east of Columbus, around 9 a.m. The chain-reaction collision resulted in at least three vehicles catching fire. The cause of the crash is currently under investigation, and a team of National Transportation Safety Board investigators is en route to the scene.

The students and chaperones on the bus were en route to an Ohio School Boards Association conference in Columbus, as confirmed by Tuscarawas Valley Superintendent Derek Varansky. In a Facebook post, Varansky stated, “Right now, our focus is on getting in touch with our Tusky Valley families who had loved ones on the bus and providing support to our entire school community.”

Upon learning about the crash, conference organizers decided to cancel the event, as per spokesperson Jeff Chambers.

Pioneer Trails, the charter bus company involved, offered its condolences to those affected by the crash and assured cooperation with authorities. However, the company refrained from further comments pending the ongoing investigation.

In response to the tragedy, the American Red Cross sent 30 units of blood to a hospital in the Mount Carmel Health System to aid the victims. Marita Salkowski, regional communications director for the American Red Cross of Central and Southern Ohio, stated that a center was set up at a United Methodist Church in Etna for bus passengers who did not require medical attention to contact their loved ones.

As concerned parents arrived at the Tuscarawas Valley Middle-High School parking lot, school officials spoke with them before they entered the premises to pick up their children, reported the Columbus Dispatch. Laurie Fragasse, a parent, expressed her distress, saying, “I’m sick. I’m sick to my stomach,” as she collected her daughter.

Numerous emergency workers responded to the crash scene, and Ohio Department of Transportation cameras captured smoke billowing from the site. Police officers blocked adjacent entrance ramps to I-70 East and West, leading to increased traffic along the road.

This tragic incident in Ohio is the second fatal crash involving high school students on a charter bus in recent times. In September, a charter bus transporting high school students to band camp veered off a New York highway, resulting in two deaths and several injuries.

Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press writers Ron Todt in Philadelphia and Bruce Shipkowski in Toms River, New Jersey, contributed to this report..