A tractor trailer collided with a Levy County school bus Wednesday afternoon, sending five students to UF Health Shands in Gainesville. 

According to a Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) report, the accident occurred at 3:46 p.m. on US Highway 19 (also US 98) at SE 140 Lane, which is north of Inglis.

The bus driver, a 56-year-old Inglis woman, was traveling north with 10 students on US 19 and stopped to discharge riders with the bus lights flashing.

For reasons still under investigation, a 34-year-old Seffner man failed to stop the 2019 tractor trailer he was driving, causing the front right of the truck and the side of the trailer to slam into the bus. 

FHP reported that the bus came to final rest further north on US 19, while the tractor trailer came to rest on the grass shoulder. Both drivers were wearing seatbelts, and the bus driver suffered minor injuries.

Five of the 10 students were transported to UF Health Shands, with two in serious condition, according to FHP.