School Bus Easily Handles High-Speed Rear Collision As If It Were Built For It

      Courtesy of Shane Kreuscher

      Shane Kreuscher, a Wisconsin native, faced a frightening scenario earlier this week that would alarm any parent. As his three daughters exited the school bus, he heard a loud crash outside his home. Upon rushing outside, he discovered that a pickup truck had collided violently with the back of the bus, pushing it nearly 30 feet. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured, including the truck driver, who could barely be recognized. All the children sustained only minor injuries, while the bus experienced what could be described as a superficial damage.

      The images of the aftermath seem surreal when compared to Kreuscher’s doorbell camera footage. The video captures the moment the pickup strikes the bus with such force that it crumples the cabin of the truck all the way to the bed. The truck was completely destroyed. In contrast, the bus sustained minimal damage, with only some sheet metal peeling off, while its underlying frame appeared to remain intact. It was as if a beer can had been in a collision with a steel I-beam.

      Courtesy of Shane Kreuscher

      In an impressive turn of events, the truck driver was trapped inside but emerged unharmed, as only the passenger side of the vehicle was damaged.

      An examination of the bus reveals that its structure fulfilled its intended purpose. Beneath the yellow exterior lies a robust chassis with frame rails extending to the rear. Metal skirting flanks both sides, and in this instance, that seems to be the extent of the damage. The bus requires these lengthy frame rails to support its three-and-a-half-ton weight, but all that steel also provides significant crash protection.

      These screengrabs from an episode of How It’s Made illustrate the frame and suspension of the IC bus without its bodywork, sourced from IC Bus on YouTube.

      The rear overhang behind the axle played a crucial role in protecting Kreuscher's daughters and the other children. A compact car would have fared poorly against a speeding truck due to its lack of material strength and weight compared to the solid steel construction of the bus, which typically weighs over 20,000 pounds when fully fueled.

      In a now-deleted Facebook post, the pickup driver stated he “didn’t see any lights or signs and the sun was blinding.” However, Kreuscher told The Drive that all of the bus's stop signs were deployed and its lights were on during the incident. Regardless of the sunlight, the truck driver did not seem to brake or swerve; instead, they drove directly into the bus. The investigation by the Waupaca County Sheriff’s Department is ongoing, with no official information released at the time of this report.

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