1 student killed, 23 injured after school bus flips in Ohio to avoid striking minivan

One student is dead and 23 other children were injured after an elementary school bus flipped in west central Ohio on Tuesday morning, state officials said.

The crash happened just before 8 a.m. in Clark County, about 40 miles west of Columbus, the Columbus Dispatch, part of the USA TODAY Network reported. The bus was from Northwestern Local Schools, whose classes began Tuesday.

The two-vehicle wreck, which also involved a minivan, took place on Route 41 in Lawrenceville, the Associated Press reported.

Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper Tyler Ross told the outlet 52 students and one bus driver were on board when the wreck took place.

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Nearly two dozen students injured, 1 dead

The bus was carrying children when it collided with the minivan and overturned on its top. In a briefing with local news media, authorities confirmed one student died.

A preliminary investigation revealed the minivan was traveling east along the highway when it veered into the lane of the westbound bus, Ross told the AP. The bus then left the road, veered onto the shoulder and flipped.

The student who died was ejected from the bus and pronounced dead at the scene, the outlet reported.

Several EMS units responded to the scene, and medical helicopters were put on standby to provide assistance. Additional assistance was also requested from neighboring departments, the Dispatch reported.

Dayton Children's Hospital officials confirmed they were treating patients from the crash.

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Hospital treated 22 students

"The Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association has declared a mass casualty incident, per its protocol," a statement from the hospital read.

Ross told the AP, emergency medical personnel transported 13 students to hospitals and said 10 others were brought to hospitals "by family or other personal means."

Initially the hospital reported it saw 22 children from this accident.

Of the 23 children hurt, troopers reported, 22 suffered non-life-threatening injurers. One child suffered serious injuries and was taken to the local Children's Hospital, the AP said.

The extent of that child's injurers was not immediately known.

Emergency personnel also transported the driver of the minivan and one passenger to a hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries, the AP reported.

Northwestern Local Schools alerted families about the crash on social media.

Contributing: The Associated Press