An off-duty Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officer was seriously injured Friday morning when his patrol vehicle collided with the rear of a Marion County school bus that was stopped to pick up children.
According to a Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) release, the crash occurred at approximately 6:55 a.m. on SW 49th Avenue Road at the intersection of SW 82nd Place Road. The school bus was facing south in the outside lane with its flashing lights activated and stop signs extended as it prepared to pick up children at a bus stop.
According to the initial information provided, the officer was driving south in the same lane in his assigned marked GPD Ford Explorer when he failed to observe the stopped bus. The front of the patrol vehicle struck the rear of the bus.
Thirteen students were aboard the bus, along with a 37-year-old driver and a 54-year-old bus aide. One 9-year-old student, the bus driver and the bus aide were transported to AdventHealth Ocala with minor injuries.
The GPD officer sustained very serious injuries and was transported to HCA Florida Ocala Hospital.
Editor’s note: FHP updated its release to say there were 13 students on the bus and not 12.
