He was in a previous accident in September 2016 when he drove around a blind curve in a residential area and failed to yield to a right of way and sideswiped another vehicle.
#Mailbox decals driver
Walker, aged 24, was identified as the driver of the school bus and had been issued his commercial driver's license (CDL) of April 2016. Students had previously complained about Walker's quality of driving and the private company that he was employed under, Durham School Services, had a history of traffic accidents in Tennessee. Ĭhattanooga Officers testified during the 2016 hearing that the school bus traveled between 48 and 52 mph, in a 30 mph zone. Chattanooga police disputed the accuracy of this claim. According to CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann, the mother of three children on the bus, including one who died, stated that her surviving children told her that Walker asked if they were "ready to die" immediately before the crash. On the day after the crash, a spokesman for the Chattanooga police department reported that drugs and alcohol were not factors. The cause of the crash is under investigation, but officials believe that the speed of the bus might have been a contributing factor. Purkey with the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Governor Bill Haslam issued a statement that night offering his thoughts and prayers to the families involved as did David W. Donations of teddy bears, money and pizzas to the Children's Hospital at Erlanger were also seen.
Lines were seen at Blood Assurance in Chattanooga, with staff fast tracking donors with blood type O negative and had extended their hours at three locations to better serve donors. The NFL Tennessee Titans donated $25,000 to the Woodmore Fund, which benefits the families affected by the crash and wore "W.E.S" decals on their helmets in their game against the Chicago Bears in tribute to the students. Support was seen throughout the community and in other states. Photographs provided by parents in the waiting room, or taken of the child and shown to teachers were used to identify the students admitted into the hospital. The children also did not have any form of identification with them when they arrived at the hospital and all were wearing school uniforms when they were admitted. Identification of the victims was hampered by many of the children being too young to know their parents names or phone numbers, many referred to their parents with informal names such as "Mama", and did not know their names, spellings, or birth dates. Walker was the only victim to be charged in connection with the collision. The driver of the bus was not seriously injured, but along with the children was also taken to the hospital, where he was arraigned. Twenty-three children were hospitalized, six of whom were in critical condition. Of the nine children treated directly, three escaped for safety with minor injuries. Of them, nine were treated directly for minor injuries. Thirty-two children were injured in the crash.
Of the deceased, three were fourth-graders, one a third-grader, one a first-grader, and one a kindergartner, none of whom were older than ten. The bus was transporting 37 children as passengers when it crashed.įive of the children died at the scene of the crash. The rescue effort took more than two hours, even though the last child was removed from the bus around 4:30 pm. Walker lost control of the bus and swerved off of the roadway to the right, striking an elevated driveway and mailbox, swerved to the left and began to overturn, striking a telephone pole and a tree." Īuthorities received a call about the crash just before 3:30 pm and first responders worked the scene for many hours to remove all of the victims from the bus. Walker, reportedly lost control of the bus and caused it to strike a pole and then a tree and flip over. The timeline of the events leading up to, and through the crash were documented by cameras within the bus. The bus, operated by Durham School Services, was transporting children from Woodmore Elementary School. The incident took place in the city's Brainerd neighborhood on Talley Road, which officials described as a "narrow, winding road".
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