School Bus Vs. Pickup Crash Sends 9 Students, 1 Adult To Hospital

TOWN OF CRAWFORD, NY — Officials say that there were no serious injuries when a pickup truck collided with a bus full of schoolchildren this morning.

The Town of Crawford Police Department says that on Monday morning, around 8:54 a.m., they responded to a report of a school bus accident at the intersection of State Route 52 and Orange County Route 17, in the Town of Crawford.

Police say a 2021 Dodge truck driven by 37-year-old Daniel Mellon, of Pine Bush, was traveling east in the eastbound lane of State Route 52 when it collided with a 2024 First Student school bus operated by 54-year-old Shawin M Nedd-Welcome, of Montgomery.

The First Student Bus was taking 43 Pine Bush students to the Edward J. Russell Elementary School. The bus was making a left-hand turn onto State Route 52 from Orange County Route 17 when the collision took place.

Nine students and an adult were taken to Garnett Medical Center, in Middletown, by ambulance. The adult, and the students who are all elementary school age (5-10), suffered minor injuries consisting of pain and bruising. All students have been released from the hospital, while the adult was still being evaluated.

All other students from the bus continued to the elementary school to be checked by the nurses and were released to their parents/guardians, according to the Pine Bush Central School District.

"We would like to thank the Pine Bush Volunteer Ambulance Corp, the Montgomery Ambulance, the Shawangunk Valley Ambulance Corp, the Town of Crawford Police Department, Town of Montgomery Police Department, the New York State Police Department, and the Pine Bush Fire Department for their swift response and compassionate care for our students," the district said in a statement released on Monday morning.

The Town of Crawford Police Department was assisted at the scene by the Pine Bush Central School District, the Montgomery Police Department, New York State Police and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. Orange County Emergency Management also assisted, along with Pine Bush and Walden Fire, Pine Bush Montgomery and Empress Ambulance,

The investigation is still ongoing. If you witnessed the accident, you are asked to contact police at 845-744-3300.