More than 20 students were taken by ambulance after the freeway crash occurred and two of the students are suffering from serious arm injuries and one additional suffered from a broken collar bone.
According to an ongoing report from The Tennessean, officials have stated that all of the students on the bus have been transported to Nashville hospitals for treatment.
At about 11 am today, one of three school buses headed toward the Opryland Hotel crashed on Interstate 65 in Nashville and injured 23 high school students that were in town for a convention.
The students, part of Chester County School District, were in town for a convention being held at the famed Opryland Hotel when the bus lost control, struck a guardrail and overturned while attempting to exit the freeway.
Nashville Fire Department and Tennessee Highway Patrol were on site immediately following the accident.
Nashville Metro Police spokesman, Don Aaron, stated that 46 total people were on the bus when it overturned, 43 of which were students.
“The first bus driver lost control of the vehicle, the bus went to the left side of the exit ramp, she over corrected back to the right and the bus struck a guardrail and overturned,” Aaron told reporters on scene.
Photos popped up on social media shortly following the crash and showed people pulling students from the emergency hatches on the roof of the overturned bus. The crash shut down traffic in at least one of the northbound lanes of the interstate, and officials do not estimate the debris and bus to be cleared from the road until sometime this afternoon.
At least 23 students hurt in Middle Tennessee school bus crash https://t.co/7GxfO2V2bk
(Photo: Jake Lowary/The Tennessean) pic.twitter.com/Xccpa46Gka— WBIR Channel 10 (@wbir) November 18, 2016
Other photos began popping up from students and helicopter footage that showed uninjured students forming a circle on the roadside as they prayed for their fellow classmates.
https://twitter.com/kelseeeey_dunn/status/799679114722611200
Tennessee Highway Patrol said that they are investigating the crash and are looking into whether a mechanical fault or malfunction played a role in the crash.
Aaron also stated that the bus has only been in service for approximately a year at this point, and the two buses following the crash were not involved in the accident.
The students were headed to the Opryland Hotel for a convention of Beta Club which is a national organization set to welcome more than 36 different high schools to the area.
Motorists have been asked to avoid the area until crews can completely clear the bus and debris from the area.
Watch The Tennessean’s video about the crash below.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the children during this time.