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1 dead, dozens hurt in Minnesota bus crash

A bus carrying students and their chaperones home from a band trip to Chicago rolled over on a highway on Saturday, killing one student and injuring dozens of others on board, authorities said.
/ Source: The Associated Press

A bus carrying students and their chaperones home from a band trip to Chicago rolled over on a highway Saturday, killing one student and injuring the dozens of others on board, authorities said.

The bus was traveling west on Interstate 94 about 30 miles northwest of Minneapolis when it rolled shortly before 6 a.m. and slid into a ditch, said State Patrol dispatcher Tom Aspling. He said 47 people were on board.

The cause of the crash near Albertville was not immediately determined. The weather at the time was dry.

The bus was one of two carrying students from Pelican Rapids High School, according to the western Minnesota school's Web site.

One person died, said Tim Burke, a spokesman for Allina Hospitals and Clinics. The students and their chaperones were taken to several hospitals.

At least two people were in critical condition and at least 21 had been released, hospital officials said.

The students on the second bus were unhurt and taken to a church in Albertville, according to the school's Web site.

Colleen Moerke, wife of Pelican Rapids High School Principal Glen Moerke, told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis that the students had performed Friday in Chicago over spring break and were to return to the school Saturday morning.

A call to the bus company, Richards Transportation Co. in Moorhead, Minnesota, was not immediately returned.