Philly Student Injured in Tour Bus Crash Speaks Out
"The first time it flipped over I guess I hit my head because after that I went to sleep and I don't remember anything else happening."
By David Chang and Randy Gyllenhaal ••
Most of the Philadelphia students that were injured in the Maryland bus crash are at home healing, but four remain in the hospital. Also in the hospital is one beloved teacher who remains in critical condition.
A Philadelphia student who was injured in a charter tour bus crash is speaking out for the first time as she and her classmates continue to recover.
On Monday Kayla Daniels, 13, was on a bus carrying 25 other students at Charles W. Henry School along with three chaperones and a driver. The students were headed to a field trip in Washington, D.C. Daniels told NBC10 it was a trip she and her classmates had been looking forward to.
"We're all going to different high schools so it was fun that we would actually have the chance to be all together on one trip," she said.
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A preliminary investigation revealed the driver of the blue sedan -- who wasn't injured -- cut off the bus causing the bus to go up the embankment and strike a tree before landing on its side, police said.
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A bus filled with eighth graders traveling from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C. for a field trip overturned Monday morning after a car traveling southbound on Interstate 95 clipped it while attempting to pass, officials said.
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The Werner Coach tour bus carried 26 children from the C.W. Henry 8th grade class, two teachers, a chaperone and the driver. A GoFundMe Page set up "to help offset costs for all those affected by this recent disaster" had nearly reached its $15,000 goal by Thursday afternoon.
NBC10 - Lauren Mayk
The bus left Philadelphia, with students from C.W. Henry School along Carpenter Lane in the Mt. Airy neighborhood, Monday morning.
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The bus flipped in the southbound lanes near Exit 89 in Havre de Grace at 9:25 a.m., Maryland State Police said.
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After being clipped, the bus veered to the right side of the highway and hit an embankment and a tree before overturning on its left side. Damage to the hill and guardrail on the right side of the highway remained.
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Philadelphia Police union president John McNesby said officers headed to a Washington, D.C. memorial were directly behind the bus. They stopped and offered assistance at the scene just moments later.
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State police first tweeted about the crash at 9:54 a.m., saying a medical helicopter was assisting.
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University of Maryland Medical System spokesman Michael Schwartzberg said Brittany Jacobs, a special education teacher, remained in critical condition Tuesday afternoon. She was airlifted to the University of Maryland R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center.
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University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air took in nine patients.
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Another 17 people were treated at University of Maryland Harford Memorial Hospital in Havre de Grace, hosptial officials said.
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Philadelphia School District Superintendent William Hite said some of the children were already released as of early afternoon and that a bus would take the children back to Philly.
NBC10 - Tim Furlong
By midday Monday, crews had the bus upright.
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Police interviewed the driver of the car, and the crash remained under investigation Monday afternoon.
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The Philadelphia Police officers, recruits and their travelling party returned back to Philly around 1:45 p.m. They were credited with helping emergency responders on the scene.
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Maryland State Police took hours investigating and cleaning up the wreck. The roadway finally reopened after 2 p.m.
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As of 5:40 p.m., most of the injured were released from hospitals and reunited with family.
NBC10 - Tim Furlong
"Werner Coach is cooperating fully with police, officials from the Maryland State Police and others to assist the passengers involved in the accident in Maryland," the Phoenixville, Pennsylvania-based company said in a statement. "Werner Coach wishes to express its sorrow and sympathy to those impacted by this accident. Werner places the safe transportation of all their passengers at the highest level. With more than 88 years in operation, they strive to make a trip on one of our coaches a great experience."
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Some students returned to the school Monday night.
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By midday Tuesday, four children and Jacobs remained hospitalized, the school district said. One child with serious injuries.
Daniels said they were all singing songs as the bus drove on I-95 in northeastern Maryland near Havre de Grace when a blue sedan began to pass them on the left. The car lost control and clipped the front of the bus, causing it to overturn, according to State Police.
"Then all of a sudden the bus started swerving and one of the kids yelled," Daniels said. "The first time it flipped over I guess I hit my head because after that I went to sleep and I don't remember anything else happening."
Dozens of students from a Philadelphia school were injured during a tour bus crash on I-95. NBC10’s Brandon Hudson has the details and speaks to the grandmother of one of the students.
Daniels suffered bruises to her face. As of Tuesday, four of her classmates as well as a teacher, Brittany Jacobs, remain hospitalized. Jacobs, a special education teacher, is in critical condition.
"Miss Jacobs, she's always there whenever I need a problem solved," Daniels said.
After local students and teachers were among the passengers on a bus that crashed in Maryland on Monday, members of the Charles W. Henry School in Philadelphia are reacting.
Parents are thankful to the first responders, including a bus full of Philadelphia Police officers who were at the right place at the right time on I-95.
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Vai Sikahema and Tracy Davidson talk with the President of the FOP, John McNesby, who has details about the Philadelphia Police who were directly behind a bus crash in Maryland. The bus was transporting children from the Philadelphia area on a class field trip.
"Give a thanks out to the officers who actually jumped out and helped them," said Kayla's father Haidache Daniels. "Put my hands out and clap. Because God sent them and if they weren't there, this situation might have been worse."
A police officer who helped rescue Philadelphia students and teachers following a tour bus crash on I-95 in Maryland spoke to NBC10’s Denise Nakano in an exclusive interview.
