Rockford, IL : Two Roosevelt students hospitalized after car, bus collision on Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Two female Roosevelt Alternative High School students were transported to the hospital this afternoon after their vehicle collided with a Rockford School District bus at the intersection of Bruce and North Winnebago streets.

None of the 17 West View Elementary School students on the bus were injured, and the Roosevelt students were alert and conscious at the hospital, Assistant Deputy Chief Pat Hoey said.

It happened just before 3 p.m. Witnesses told police the two Roosevelt students were in a Buick LeSabre and chased after a red SUV at high speeds along Bruce Street. The LeSabre ran a stop sign and collided with the side of the school bus, which was headed southbound on Winnebago Street.
The SUV was occupied by a couple of females. Witnesses told police the females in the SUV were laughing at the students who were chasing them in the LeSabre.

The LeSabre was going fast enough that it pushed the bus a few feet into Winnebago Street before being pinned under it. A tow truck was called to lift the bus off the car so the vehicles could be removed.
A rate of speed will be determined following an investigation, Hoey said. Roosevelt is near the intersection; the speed limit for the school zone is 20 mph.

"Right now, it seems to be a bad afternoon with young drivers not using caution," he said.
After word spread, parents arrived at the crash to pick up their children. West View Elementary School Principal Ronnie Bazan also came to the scene.

Residents in the area said they heard a loud crash and immediately went outside to see what the commotion was.

"It was a big boom," said Keysha Love, who lives on Winnebago Street. "Everybody heard it."
Resident Ranodd Love, also of Winnebago Street, said he helped pull the girls from the vehicle.
"If that was somebody I loved, I'd want them to do the same (for them)," he said.

Nikki Sowl, of Winnebago Street, said the intersection of Bruce and Winnebago streets is notorious for reckless driving, so she avoids it.
"People run the stop sign, they'll fly down the street," she said.

Source :
2 Roosevelt students hospitalized after car, bus collision