Press Release — On Thursday, March 31, 2016, at approximately 3:00p.m., the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) received a report of a school bus crash on FM 1013 in Jasper County.  The crash occurred about ten (10) miles west of Kirbyville, Texas.

A Woodville Independent School District school bus was traveling eastbound o FM 1013 near Kirbyville.  The right tires of the buss travelled off the roadway.  In an attempt to steer the bus back onto the road, the driver over-corrected sending the bus into a side-skid.  The bus rolled over several times before coming to rest in an open field.

The occupants of the school bus were members of the Woodville Boys and Girls track team.  DPS has confirmed the exact number of students and coaches on the bus.  There were a total of thirty-one (31) occupants on the bus.  Of those 31 occupants on the school bus, 29 were students and  2 were coaches on the bus.  The driver of the bus was a coach.

All twenty-nine (29) students and the two (2) coaches received medical treatment.  The majority of injured victims have been treated and released from area hospitals.  However, three students remain hospitalized with pelvic, back and head injuries.  At this time, these injuries do not appear to be life-threatening.

The wrecked school bus has been inspected by State Troopers in Hardin County; however, the results of that inspection may take several days.

Jasper County Trooper are working to piece together the exact factors that contributed to this crash.  Once the crash investigation is complete, Troopers will determine whether to issue traffic citations based on all the evidence collected from the scene.