School bus, pickup truck collide

IRONWOOD - The Ironwood Public Safety Department was called to the scene of a two-vehicle crash involving a school bus and a pickup truck on Thursday afternoon on U.S. 2 just east of Easy Street in the city.

The school bus, operated by Schilleman Bus Service of Eagle River, Wisconsin, was transporting children for the Gogebic-Ontonagon Intermediate School District at 2:30 p.m. when it collided with a pickup truck.

Four people were transported to Aspirus Ironwood Hospital for minor injuries and released, according to IPSD Director Andrew DiGiorgio. The injured included three passengers on the bus and the driver of the pickup truck. The other passengers on the bus were released on scene to their parents, an IPSD release said.

Both the driver of the pickup and the driver of the school bus submitted to field sobriety tests and preliminary breath testing, the release said. Neither driver had been consuming alcohol, the report said.

Due to the impact of the crash a load of empty cans and bottles in the back of the pickup was scattered over the ground. The driver of the pickup told police that these were returnable cans and bottles for the Michigan 10-cent deposit.

IPSD was assisted at the scene by the Gogebic County Sheriff's Department, Michigan State Police, Beacon Ambulance Service, as well as the Ironwood Department of Public Works, which assisted with the cleanup of the highway.

The accident is still under investigation. DiGiorgio said that because a school bus was involved in the accident, an MSP motor carrier officer will be involved in the investigation.

-Charity Smith