Columbus, GA : More details emerge in fatal bus crash on Monday, 22nd August, 2016

The driver died and all seven students were taken to a hospital after a Muscogee County School District bus crashed Monday morning.

Roy Newman, 67, was pronounced dead at Midtown Medical Center at 11:12 a.m., said Muscogee County coroner Buddy Bryan, about 3½ hours after the single-vehicle accident on Garrett Road. An autopsy at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation crime lab in Decatur will determine the cause of death, he said.

A report from the Columbus Police Department listed the names of the students, and when given the names, Columbus Regional Health public relations coordinator Jessica Word confirmed the status of each child.

Mekala Coles, 9, was airlifted to another hospital, Word said. Lance Starbuck and Mariel Ladezma, both 5, remain at Midtown Medical Center in stable condition, and the four other students – 5-year-olds Russell Duncan and Jordyn Searcy, 6-year-old Tyler Thompson and 9-year-old Chastian Searcy – were treated and released, Word said. The nature of their injuries wasn’t released.

Officials said the cause of the wreck is unclear and remains under investigation.

All seven of the students attend Mathews Elementary School, in northeast Columbus. The accident occurred less than 1 mile from the school.

According to the report from the Columbus Police Department, the students include two pairs of children who live at the same address. Mekala Coles, the girl who was airlifted to another hospital, and Russell Duncan had to be extricated from the bus. Nobody was ejected from the bus.

Newman started working for the school district in 2013 as a bus driver trainee and became a full-time driver in March 2014, MCSD communications director Valerie Fuller said in a news release.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of our bus driver, Mr. Roy Newman, and the children and their families who were involved in the accident, “ MCSD superintendent David Lewis, who was at the crash scene and the hospital, said in the release. “We would like to thank and commend all of the emergency personnel who responded quickly to the scene with tremendous expertise and professionalism.”

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More details emerge in fatal bus crash