An investigation is being conducted by law enforcement authorities to determine the circumstances surrounding a recent school bus accident in northeastern South Dakota which initially went unreported, but later was made public after some students on board the bus informed their parents about the incident.
According to Tony Mangan, Public Information Officer for the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, the accident, which involved a Sisseton School District passenger bus occurred at around 4:30 Monday afternoon on a gravel road northwest of Sisseton.
A preliminary investigation revealed the 72-year-old bus driver was traveling on 115th Street when the bus left the roadway and entered the ditch. The bus was later pulled out of the ditch by another school bus from a different district. The kids on board the Sisseton school bus were then taken home by the driver of the other bus.
The highway patrol says the driver of the Sisseton School Bus was checked out at a local hospital Monday night. The 13 passengers on board the bus were not examined by medical personnel after the accident. It was later determined that three young girls on board the bus sustained minor injuries, as a result of the crash.
The highway patrol says the accident initially went unreported because there was no damage to the bus and there were no known injuries to anyone on board. Authorities and parents were eventually notified of the incident on Tuesday.
The driver of the school bus has been placed on leave until further notice.
An ongoing investigation is underway to determine the circumstances leading up to the accident.
