SCHOOL BUS CRASH
REPORTS 2006
School Bus Crash in Tampa Kills 1,
Hurts 10
March 2, 2006
TAMPA -- A school bus rammed into an Isuzu sport utility vehicle
Wednesday, killing the 69-year-old driver of the SUV.
Eight Pierce Middle School students, an
aide and the bus driver were taken to University Community Hospital-Carrollwood
for observation. None was seriously hurt.
The Isuzu's driver, Virginia Guerra
Butterworth, was pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was in the
SUV.
Butterworth had been driving westbound on
West Fern Street when the school bus, traveling northbound on Hesperides
Street, struck the Isuzu's driver's side in a T-bone fashion, ramming
the vehicle 30 yards from the intersection.
Butterworth was in the bus' right of way,
Hillsborough County Sheriff's spokesman J.D. Callaway said, although he
didn't know whether she had run the Fern Street stop sign. She had been
wearing a seat belt.
In October, Butterworth was cited for
running a red light, Hillsborough County court records show. She lived
less than a mile away.
Butterworth was a widow originally from
Panama, and had been planning to go back in a few weeks to care for her
elderly mother, said neighbor Ailen Cruz, 18. Butterworth had lived at
6402 N. Cameron Ave. for several years, and was known for driving
elderly people to Bingo games and giving neighbors Christmas presents,
Cruz said.
School bus driver Donald Cochran, 35,
aide Shirley Myrich, 58, and the eight special-needs students on the bus
all were wearing seat belts, Callaway said.
Crime scene tape surrounded two blocks of
the accident scene as deputies blocked Hesperides in both directions for
hours Wednesday afternoon while Sheriff's traffic homicide
detectives analyzed the scene, designating skid marks with tiny, orange
cones.
They were assisted by Florida Department
of Transportation officers, who were called out because the accident
involved a school bus.
Callaway said he didn't know how fast the
school bus had been going, but the bus driver had not been charged with
any violation. The accident was still under investigation.
By JUSTIN GEORGE St. Petersburg Times
back to
Crash Reports 2006
top
|
