Bus Rollover Crash Sends 19 To Hospital In Weld Co.

WELD COUNTY, CO – Twenty-seven people were injured in Weld County after a school bus was sideswiped by a truck and rolled over on a county road Thursday afternoon. The Colorado State Patrol said the driver of a flatbed truck may have fallen asleep at the wheel while traveling south on County Road 49 near Hudson.

The truck drifted into the northbound lane around 4:09 p.m. and struck the bus filled with students from Northridge High School and Greeley Central on their way home from a field trip to Elitch Gardens in Denver.

The bus rolled one and one-quarter times, coming to rest near an oil and gas site near CR 49 and CR 22 3/4, the State Patrol said. Oil workers from Noble Energy rushed out to help passengers from the bus.

Around 35 people were on the bus, including students and chaperones, a Greeley-Evans School District 6 administrator told Denver7.

All the passengers were able to escape from the bus via emergency exits and walk to safety, a Platte River Valley Fire Department spokesperson said. The driver was the most severely injured, the school district administrator said.

The bus rolled one and one-quarter times, coming to rest near an oil and gas site. Oil workers from Noble Energy rushed out to help passengers from the bus.

Photos of the 2015 Ford flatbed driven by the other driver showed it was registered to a company called "Road Safe."

Passengers were taken to four hospitals in Denver, Brighton and Greeley, a Facebook message from District 6 said.

"This is been a very difficult afternoon for our District 6 family. Please keep these students and staff in your thoughts," the district posted.

The driver of the flatbed truck may face traffic charges.

See Denver7 coverage here.

Image via YouTube

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