Crash rips tires off bus; no children hurt

AMHERST – A school bus carrying a half-dozen elementary school children had its left rear tires torn off by a passing car in a Friday afternoon accident that sent the driver of the car to the hospital for examination, but did not hurt any of the children.
The bus was nearing the end of its run from the Wilkins and Clark elementary schools in Amherst when the accident happened at about 3:30 p.m. on Amherst Street in Amherst, halfway between the Milford Oval and the Amherst common.
The bus was headed southwest, toward Milford, when it was struck by a Plymouth Breeze going in to the opposite direction on the two-lane road. Police said the car appeared to have crossed over the yellow center line.
The front end of the car was badly damaged in the accident, and the two tires on the left side of the bus’s rear axle were completely torn off.
“The whole rear end is gone,” said Bob Kasynak, technician for First Student, the company that provides school bus service for Amherst and several other area towns.
The bus ended up on the shoulder of the road. The driver, six children and one teacher were on the bus at the time.
No children were hurt, and the passengers were picked up by another First Student bus, which completed the route.
No further information was available Friday.