Ferndale, NY +Route 17 MVA+

Ferndale, NY +Route 17 MVA+ A accident with a bus that into water near Route 17 at Exit 101 at Ferndale Lewis Road with multiple aided, has Hatzolah on the scene requesting two ambulances and ALS to respond as well.

U/D: 18:03
KJEMS sending two buses, multiple agencies enroute.

U/D: 18:08
Hatzolah on the scene treating about 30 children all with minor injuries, still requesting all available man power to the staging area at the gas station.

U/D: 18:21
Liberty, NY - Bus Carrying Boys Plunges Into River

Liberty, NY - A bus carrying Hasidic boys struck a building and landed in the Middle Mongaup River today after it failed to negotiate a turn at the bottom of a hill on Ferndale-Loomis Road.

A witness said, the accident happened at about 5:30 p.m. When the bus was trying to make a right at the bottom of the hill, where Old Route 17 intersects Ferndale-Loomis Road, when it struck the corner of the Ferndale Antiques Marketplace before plunging into the river.
It is believed everyone got off the bus safely. Several of the children were taken away on stretchers.

This is the second time since 2004 that a bus failed to come to a stop at the bottom of the hill.
On May 23, 2004, excessive speed was the primary cause of a charter bus crash that injured 54 teenage girls returning from a religious retreat.
The state Public Transportation Safety Board ruled that wet pavement and inadequate road signs contributed to that crash, while the poor condition of the bus's brakes exacerbated the crash.

Officials were still investigating todays accident late Thursday.