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

Accident – Death – Obituary News : Tragic Accident Claims Lives of Students in Ohio Highway Crash

ETNA, Ohio — A devastating accident unfolded on an Ohio highway Tuesday morning when a charter bus carrying high school students was rear-ended by a semitruck, resulting in the deaths of six individuals and leaving 18 others injured, according to officials.

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

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

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine expressed his condolences during a press conference at the scene, 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.”

Fifteen students and the bus driver were taken to nearby hospitals, while other students were brought to a reunification site, officials confirmed.

Furthermore, all three occupants of another vehicle involved in the collision were pronounced dead at the scene, the highway patrol revealed. They were identified as Dave Kennat, 56, of Navarre; Kristy Gaynor, 39, of Zoar; and Shannon Wigfield, 45, of Bolivar.

One of the drivers of the passenger vehicles was also hospitalized. As for the drivers of the commercial vehicles involved, 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 tragic incident occurred as all vehicles were traveling westbound on Interstate 70 in Licking County, approximately 26 miles (42 kilometers) east of Columbus, at around 9 a.m. The crash set off a chain reaction, resulting in at least three vehicles catching fire. The cause of the collision remains under investigation, and a team of National Transportation Safety Board investigators is en route to the scene.

The students and chaperones aboard the bus were heading to an Ohio School Boards Association conference in Columbus, informed Tuscarawas Valley Superintendent Derek Varansky.

“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,” Varansky shared in a Facebook post.

The conference was canceled once organizers were made aware of the tragic crash, according to spokesperson Jeff Chambers.

Pioneer Trails, the charter bus company involved, offered condolences to those affected by the accident and assured cooperation with authorities, although no further comments would be made pending the investigation.

Responding to the tragedy, the Red Cross dispatched 30 units of blood to a hospital in the Mount Carmel Health System to aid the victims, said Marita Salkowski, regional communications director for the American Red Cross of Central and Southern Ohio. Additionally, a center was established at a United Methodist Church in Etna where bus passengers not requiring medical attention could go to contact their loved ones.

As concerned parents arrived at Tuscarawas Valley Middle-High School parking lot, school officials engaged in conversations to provide support before parents went inside to pick up their children, as reported by the Columbus Dispatch.

“I’m sick. I’m sick to my stomach,” parent Laurie Fragasse expressed her distress while collecting her daughter.

Emergency workers promptly responded to the crash, and Ohio Department of Transportation cameras captured smoke billowing from the site. Police officers were stationed at nearby entrance ramps to I-70 East and West, causing increased traffic along the road leading to the interstate.

This incident marks the second fatal crash involving high school students on a charter bus in recent months in the United States. In September, a charter bus transporting high school students to band camp veered off a New York highway, resulting in the deaths of two individuals and several injuries.

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