A tragic bus crash in Iowa has left one person dead and 32 others injured after a college baseball team’s vehicle careened off the road on Wednesday morning.
The Iowa State Patrol confirmed the single-vehicle horror unfolded on Highway 4 near Twin Lakes just after 11:00 a.m. involving an Iowa Lakes Community College bus.
The bus was reportedly carrying the school’s baseball team who were traveling to face North Arkansas College in games scheduled for Thursday and Friday this week.
Emergency services scrambled to the scene where they found the vehicle had crashed while transporting the student-athletes and staff south for the tournament.
The impact was so severe that multiple medical helicopters were called in to airlift the most critically injured victims to regional trauma centers for surgery.
Responders from the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office and Rockwell City Police worked to pull the injured from the wreckage and transport them to various hospitals.
A tragic bus crash in Iowa has left one person dead and 32 others injured after a college baseball team’s vehicle careened off the road on Wednesday morning
The Iowa State Patrol confirmed the horror unfolded on Highway 4 near Twin Lakes
The impact was so severe that multiple medical helicopters were called in to airlift the most critically injured victims
‘Our hearts are heavy as we grieve alongside the Iowa Lakes College community. The loss of a life is a tragedy that reaches far beyond one campus,’ a statement said.
Dr. Rick Massengale, North Arkansas College president, extended his ‘deepest condolences’ to the family and loved ones of the individual who passed away.
‘We are lifting up in prayer those who were injured and all who are affected,’ he continued as the higher education community rallied around the small college.
‘During moments like this, we are reminded that the higher education community is a family,’ Massengale added while offering support to the grieving Iowa school.
Iowa Representative Randy Feenstra said he was ‘deeply concerned’ about the fatal accident and praised the quick response from the local first responders.
‘I am grateful to our local law enforcement, Iowa state patrol, and medical professionals who have been quickly responding at the scene,’ the congressman stated.
The identity of the individual who lost their life has not yet been released to the public as officials work to notify the next of kin following the crash.
It remains unclear if the person who died was a student-athlete, a member of the coaching staff, or the driver who was behind the wheel at the time of the wreck.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the Iowa State Patrol, who have not yet commented on whether mechanical failure or weather was a factor.
