School Bus Fills With Smoke, Sends 8 Students To Hospital: SCPD

COMMACK, NY - A total of 8 students were hospitalized after a school bus filled with smoke in Commack on Tuesday morning, according to Suffolk Police.

The school bus was driving on Edscho Lane and Chassyl Road, transporting Commack school children to Sawmill Intermediate School on New Highway, when it began experienced mechanical difficulty, police said.

The bus driver pulled over and evacuated the bus which had 21 children on board, ages 8 to 11.

The students were safely transported to school, where they were brought to the school nurses for evaluation, school district officials said in a message to the community.

Due to the number of students and the possibility of smoke exposure, the district called the Commack Fire Department for assistance, who responded to the school at 9:20 a.m.

According to police, eight children were transported by the Commack Volunteer Ambulance Corps. to Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip.

Among the eight, one child was treated for low oxygen and one was treated for abdominal pain. The other six were evaluated. The remaining 13 children went home with their parents.

"At this time, to our knowledge, all students are doing well," district officials wrote in the message.

All parents were contacted by the school.

While the source of the smoke has not yet been identified, the bus company is working to identify the source of the problem.

Image via Shutterstock