Student visitors involved in campus bus crash

Kansas City middle-schoolers were aboard when the bus rolled into a pole near Scruggs

A bus from AC Prep Middle School rests against a light pole foundation near Scruggs. April 6, 2023. (Photo by Tobias Hunter/Clarion News)

By Gracen Gaskins/Clarion News

LINCOLN UNIVERSITY – A school bus loaded with Kansas City middle school students crashed Thursday afternoon into a light pole near Scruggs University Center. According to L.U.P.D., none of the students or staff from the African-Centered College Preparatory Academy (AC Prep) was injured.

According to several AC Prep students, the bus had encountered mechanical issues en route to their schedule LU campus tour. The bus allegedly stopped along the highway, was worked on, and then continued to the university. Students said they toured the campus and then boarded the bus for the return trip to Kansas City.

“We were on the bus waiting for the driver and the bus just took off,” said one of the students. The driver was allegedly away from the bus when it began to roll down Chestnut Street before turning right and impacting a light pole.

The bus came to rest against the concrete base of the pole. Students were evacuated from the bus immediately after the 1:50 p.m. incident. LUPD officers arrived and took control of the scene, which closed Chestnut Street.

“The driver got off and the bus had a mind of its own,” said LUPD Chief Gary Hill. As of press time, it’s unclear how the students will return to Kansas City.