Teen killed, six people hurt in Arizona school bus crash

Posted by Fernande Dalal on Saturday, August 17, 2024

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 A collision involving a school bus and a truck in Arizona killed a 17-year-old girl and left six other people injured, according to officials.

State Department of Public Safety authorities said 19 people were aboard the bus around 9:30 a.m. Sunday when it was rear-ended by a semi-tractor-trailer on Interstate 40 near Sanders.

DPS officials said traffic had slowed on the highway because of an earlier rollover crash.

They said the semi hit the school bus, and the impact pushed the vehicle into a van.

The Holbrook Indian School released a statement to Fox 10 Phoenix saying some of its students and staff were on a field trip to Window Rock, NM, at the time of the deadly wreck.

Kiarra Gordon, 17, was killed in a school bus crash near Sanders, Ariz., on Sunday. Family Photos
Officials say a semi-truck rear-ended the school bus, which had slowed down for traffic on Interstate 40. FOX 10 Phoenix
Gordon’s aunt said her niece loved playing volleyball and working with animals. Family Photos

A relative has identified the teen who died in the collision as teenager Kiarra Gordon.

Falonna Ashley, the girl’s aunt, said the teen had just celebrated her birthday in July and is survived by three younger brothers.

Gordon was part of the Navajo Nation and had just celebrated her 17th birthday in July. Family Photos

Ashley said her niece loved sports, especially volleyball, working with animals and watching movies.

“She had a beautiful soul,” the aunt said. “She’s from Wide Ruins, a small community on the Navajo Nation. She was focused on education and was thinking about what to do after high school.”

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