An SUV driver was airlifted to the hospital Thursday morning after colliding with a school bus in Southwest Miami-Dade, suffering facial injuries that officials described as serious enough to warrant a precautionary flight to an area hospital. Three students were riding the bus at the time, but none were hurt, according to officials.
The crash happened near Southwest 165th Avenue and Southwest 296th Street, according to WSVN. Rescue crews airlifted the SUV driver to the hospital after the collision, and Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office detectives said the driver was flown out as a precaution after suffering facial injuries. The station's report notes that 7SkyForce hovered above the crash scene as emergency crews worked.
Students Aboard the Bus Escaped Injury
Three students were on the school bus when the crash occurred, but officials said none of them sustained injuries. The bus itself was damaged enough that it had to be towed from the scene, per the same account. As of Thursday's report, the story was still developing, with additional details expected to follow.
Other Regional Crashes
The Southwest Miami-Dade crash is one of several SUV-and-school-bus collisions reported across the region recently, though the evidence does not establish any broader pattern linking them. In Broward County, an SUV rear-ended a Broward County Public Schools bus in Davie near Griffin Road and Southwest 82nd Avenue, according to WSVN. The 50-year-old man driving the blue Honda SUV involved in that crash was taken to HCA Florida University Hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening, while the two students riding that bus were uninjured. Eastbound traffic near the Davie intersection was temporarily closed before reopening.
A similar crash unfolded in Tattnall County, Georgia, earlier this month, where Georgia State Patrol identified the SUV driver as Deonte Ownes, 43, of Glennville, as reported by WTOC. Troopers said Ownes hit the back of a school bus that was slowing down with its caution lights on, and his vehicle went underneath the bus. He was airlifted to a hospital in Savannah by an Air Evac helicopter, and none of the students aboard that bus were injured.
