No injuries when school bus and van collide in Richardton this morning

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No one was injured Wednesday morning when a van and a school bus carrying students collided in Richardton.

Taylor Public School Principal Janine Olson said the 40-plus students who ride the bus arrived at the school at around 8:45 a.m. — about a half hour later than usual.

The shuttle bus takes students from Richardton to Taylor and it was full.

It was traveling to Taylor on Highway 10 when a van pulled out in front of the bus on the last street in town and the bus driver didn’t have time to stop, said Russ Ziegler, Richardton-Taylor Public Schools secondary principal.

“It was a good learning experience for the kids,” Ziegler said. “Everybody is OK and thankfully they were doing what they are supposed to be when riding a bus.”

He went to the scene and got on the bus to talk to the children and to make sure that everyone was physically OK and not shaken up.

“They were all in their seats and I attribute that to nobody getting hurt,” Ziegler said.

Arel Axtmann, Richardton, slid through the intersection and hit the bus, Stark County Sheriff’s Department Capt. Fern Moser said.

The bus has some bumper and signal-light damage, and another bus was brought in to transport the students, Ziegler said.

Axtmann was cited for failure to yield, Moser said. Her van sustained about $3,500 in damages and the bus had about $500.

The department had no other weather-related accident calls on Wednesday morning, Moser said.

Tags: news, local, richardton, taylor, bus, school, education