Fatal School Bus-Car Crash Remains Under Investigation

An Ocean County woman who was killed in a collision between a school bus and a car Friday in Lakewood was identified Sunday, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.

Carol Boccadutre, 76, of Jackson, was killed when she pulled out of a restaurant parking lot in Lakewood into the path of bus driven by Albert Burd, 58, of Toms River, said Al Della Fave, spokesman for the prosecutor’s office. There were 10 students on the bus at the time of the crash, and seven of them suffered minor injuries, Della Fave said.

Burd drives for Jay’s Bus Service, Della Fave said. It is unclear which district he was driving for; however, Toms River Regional School District officials say he was not driving for their district.

Della Fave said the preliminary investigation has determined the crash, which occurred shortly after 3:30 p.m., happened when Boccadutre failed to stop as she was exiting Charlie Brown’s Restaurant rear parking lot and attempting to make a left turn onto Chestnut Street heading west.

Her 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe was hit on the driver’s side by the bus, a 2007 International, and she suffered serious injuries, Lakewood police said. She was taken to Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, where she was later pronounced dead at 4:51 p.m. by Dr. Silacci, Della Fave said.

The students who were hurt also were taken to Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus; the three uninjured students were released at the scene to their parents.

Burd showed no signs of impairment, but went to Ocean Medical Center, Brick, to submit a blood sample for later testing, Della Fave said. Burd was taken to the Lakewood Police Department afterward, where a taped statement was taken as to what he witnessed just prior to the crash. Burd stated he was not on his phone nor was he distracted prior to the crash, Della Fave said.

A representative from Jay’s Bus Service responded to the scene to assist in the collection of the on-board video/GPS recordings captured at the time of the crash. Upon reviewing the video, it is clear that Burd was not on his cell phone prior to the crash, he said.

A bus driver was fired earlier in the week after a teenage passenger videotaped the driver texting while driving at speeds of up to 80 mph on the Garden State Parkway; the teen’s video went viral.

The New Jersey State Police Commercial Truck Unit was notified and will be conducting an inspection of the bus, Della Fave said.