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5 dead, including 3 children, in crash involving school bus, truck in Rushville, Illinois

The crash happened around 11:30 a.m. Monday, when a bus transporting three children crossed over into the other lane and hit a semi-truck.

Five people, including three young children, have died in a two-vehicle crash in Rushville, Illinois. The accident involved a semi-truck and a school bus, according to local authorities.

The crash happened around 11:30 a.m. Monday, according to a release from the Illinois State Police. The school bus was traveling east transporting the three children when it crossed over into the westbound lane in front of the semi-truck, where the vehicles crashed and became engulfed in flames.

The accident occurred in Schuyler County which is located in Central Illinois, about 65 miles northwest of Springfield and 79 miles southwest of Peoria.

Both the drivers of the semi-truck and the bus, and the three children riding the bus were all pronounced dead at the scene.

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Rushville bus accident: Names of victims killed released, cause under investigation

Emergency personnel work the scene of a crash on Monday, March 11, 2024 in Rushville, Ill. A bus from Schuyler-Industry Schools was traveling eastbound when “for an unknown reason” it crossed the center line on U.S. Route 24 into westbound lanes and into the path of a semitruck carrying sand, Illinois State Police said. (WICS via AP) ORG XMIT: ILTV101

Illinois State Police released the names of the five people who died and were identified by the Schuyler County coroner:

  • David Coufal, 72, from Browning, IL
  • Angela Spiker, 57, from Rushville, IL
  • Maria Miller, 5, from Rushville, IL
  • Andrew Miller, 3, from Rushville, IL
  • Noah Driscoll, 3, from Rushville, IL

The cause of the crash remains under investigation, police said.