No Injuries As Car, School Bus Collide In Manchester: Police

MANCHESTER, NJ — A Manchester Township school bus with 37 students on board and a car driven by a teenager collided Friday afternoon as the bus was taking students home from Manchester Township Elementary School, Manchester police said.

The crash happened about 3:45 p.m. at the intersection of Colonial Drive and Route 37, Capt. James Komsa said.

The teen, whom police did not identify, was driving west on Colonial Drive in the left-turn lane in a 2007 Hyundai Elantra. The yellow 2017 Thomas school bus, driven by Lamont Lett, 50, of Manchester, was driving west on Colonial Drive in the right lane and turning left onto Route 37, Komsa said.

The preliminary investigation showed that as the bus and the Hyundai entered the intersection, the teen tried to go straight instead of turning left while the bus was turning left, and the Hyundai hit the side of the school bus, he said.

Lett and all 37 students, from Manchester Township Elementary School, were wearing seatbelts, Komsa said. One student complained of head pain but ultimately refused further medical attention at the scene of the crash, he said.

The teen driver and passenger in the Hyundai, who also was a juvenile, were wearing their seatbelts and were not injured, Komsa said.

Both vehicles sustained minor damage, he said.

The crash investigation is continuing but improper lane change by the teen driver has been determined to be the cause, Komsa said. Patrolman Sage Sysol of the Traffic Safety Unit is investigating.

Assisting at the scene were emergency medical technicians from the Manchester Township Division of Emergency Services and members of the Manchester Board of Education.