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Two individuals, including a child, lost their lives and at least 10 others were injured in a collision involving a school bus and a concrete truck in rural Texas, authorities reported.

According to Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Deon Cockrell, the incident took place on State Highway 21, about 50 miles east of Austin. The bus, carrying pre-K students from Tom Green Elementary School, was returning from a field trip. According to officials, the bus did not have seatbelts.

The casualties included a boy from the bus and an occupant of a Dodge Charger that was trailing the bus at the moment of impact with the concrete truck. Alejandro Anaya, who witnessed the crash, recounted rushing to the scene to help, stating, “What I saw was all the kids covered in blood, crying, trying to get out.” Kevin Parker, a commander at Austin-Travis County EMS, said, “Four of those injured were taken to hospitals by helicopter and in critical condition.” He added that six others sustained potentially serious injuries and were transported by ground ambulance.

St. David’s South Austin Medical Center reported treating 11 patients from the accident, with two remaining in fair condition and another transferred to a different facility. The school district, through its communication, highlighted the concern for the hospitalized staff and students, with Principal Jennifer Hanna saying, “Two staff members face ‘extensive’ recovery, and one was expected to be released soon.”

This incident has started a conversation about the safety features of school buses, particularly the absence of seatbelts in older models. The district acknowledged that the bus involved was a 2011 model, one of 40 without seatbelts in its fleet of about 200 buses. Following state law, school buses from model years 2018 and later must have seatbelts. The district said in a statement, “The district hopes that the DPS accident reconstruction investigation will be able to provide more information about whether a seatbelt may have made a difference for the student who died in the accident.”