16 Injured in Crash Between School Bus and Accused Drunk Semi-Truck Driver

The bus was full of hockey players from a high school in Chicago. (Photo: CBS Chicago/YouTube)

A crash between a semi-truck and school bus on Saturday night in Warsaw, Indiana, has left 16 injured and 2 still in the hospital, WishTV reported. Warsaw Police say the semi-truck driver was drinking before the crash took place.

The semi-truck driver, Victor Santos, was charged on Monday with 22 counts of felony criminal recklessness while armed with a deadly weapon (the semi-truck is considered a deadly weapon) and four counts of causing serious bodily injury while operating a vehicle, per WishTV.

Police said they smelled alcohol on Santos’ breath and that he failed a field sobriety test. As reported, police are still waiting on the results of a blood test to determine if alcohol was in Santos’ system.

“Some of these injuries are extremely serious, and we continue to pray for the full recovery of all the students, coaches, and the bus driver who unfortunately fell victim to these crimes,” Warsaw Police said in a statement, according to WNDU.

Police initially counted 16 injured, but say the 26 charges Santos is facing reflect the 26 individuals injured in the crash, according to the report. There were 23 teenagers on the bus along with two coaches and one bus driver.

“We did at the time have three that were very serious, considered critical. Fortunately, we got information yesterday afternoon that they had stabilized,” Cpt. Brad Kellar of the Warsaw Police Department told WNDU. “So, at this time, all I know is that all that were considered injured are stable. Had that bus been hit in maybe a different way, if it had been more squared up, taking that force from the semi, I think it would’ve been a completely different situation. So, I’m fine with calling this a miracle.”

CBS Chicago reported that the critically injured students were “all alert and smiling.”

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