By Cindy Clayton
The Virginian-Pilot
SUFFOLK, Va. — Six students were taken to a hospital with minor injuries after a school-bus crash Wednesday morning on Nansemond Parkway.
The crash happened about 7 a.m. when the bus hit the back of a vehicle in the 5400 block , said Debbie George, city spokeswoman.
The injuries mostly involved neck and back pain and were not considered life-threatening, George said.
Thirty-four Nansemond River High School students were on the bus , said Bethanne Bradshaw, school division spokeswoman.
Two of the students were taken by ambulance to a nearby emergency room and others were taken on a separate school bus with a medic on board, Bradshaw said.
All of those students were treated Wednesday morning at Sentara BelleHarbour and released.
The remaining students were taken to school and their parents were contacted, Bradshaw said. Parents were to receive a letter with information about what to do if students felt bad after they got home.
William Blackwell, 39, of Portsmouth was driving the bus and was charged with following too closely, George said.
The school division’s policy when an employee is involved in a crash with a city vehicle is to take the employee immediately for drug testing, Bradshaw said.
The bus had minor damage and the other vehicle was thought to be totaled, George said.
Pilot writer Lauren King contributed to this report.