School bus with 50 students crashes into house in Hardin County

HARDIN COUNTY, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Hardin County school bus with 50 students on board ran off the road Monday afternoon and hit a house.

The crash happened around 3 p.m. along Leitchfield Road, just east of the Stephensburg area.

“I heard kind of a loud slapping sound, and I looked up … and saw the top of a school bus popping up in the yard,” said Joe Gray, who was in his backyard at the time. “My first thought was that they ran off the road to avoid something.”

Gray says he ran toward the school bus as his wife called 911.

“The bus kind of jumped over a hill, hit the house, bounced off the house, and I kind of stopped running because I didn’t know where it was going,” Gray said.

The bus then apparently hit the house a second time and stopped on the porch.

“I got up there and kicked the side door trying to get in. It wouldn’t open. I ran to the back … about eight or 10 kids had already got out of the bus. They were all helping each other,” Gray said.

John Wright with Hardin County Schools says the students were taken to a hospital to be checked out. Wright says some had cuts and bruises, but none of them suffered "serious injuries."

The students were on their way home from Lakewood Elementary School.

Wright says the driver of the bus appeared to have suffered a medical emergency, likely a seizure. However, the investigation continues to determine if that is what caused the crash.

According to Kentucky State Police, the bus driver, Jennifer Leon, 38, was flown to University Hospital. Her injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

Earl Risner lives in the house that was hit. He was not there at the time, but says he is grateful the situation wasn’t worse.

“I just thank God that the kids weren’t hurt. That’s what I was thinking,” Risner said. “I thank God she missed that tree. I’d rather give the house up than to have somebody killed.”