Nineteen children were riding to school when a driver fleeing a deputy crashed head-on into their bus in Sumter County, Florida, authorities say.

Then, deputies say, he got out and ran.

Every child escaped without injury. But one frightened 10-year-old borrowed another student’s phone to call her father, and what she told him captures how terrifying that ride became.

The collision is now drawing attention well beyond the intersection where it happened:

According to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office, the incident began Tuesday, August 25, around 7:20 a.m., when a deputy spotted 23-year-old Qahiem Williams driving 17 mph over the limit in a school zone.

ADVERTISEMENT

The deputy was working near The Villages Intermediate Center on County Road 466, near Tatonka Terrace. Investigators say Williams accelerated when the deputy turned around and switched on his emergency lights.

Williams allegedly sideswiped two vehicles at a traffic light, damaging his vehicle’s axle before it struck school bus 7818 head-on on County Road 103. Nineteen children were aboard the bus, and the sheriff’s office said all were safe and uninjured.

Deputies say Williams abandoned the vehicle and ran toward a nearby Walmart. Officers quickly caught him, and he was medically cleared before being taken to jail.

Watch the sheriff’s footage of the collision and the arrest:

FOX 35 Orlando spoke with Justin Callaway, whose 10-year-old daughter, Lily, and 5-year-old son, Liam, were on the bus. He had dropped them at their stop that morning, only to hear from his daughter minutes later.

Callaway said Lily borrowed another student’s phone and told him, “Daddy, I’m scared.” He described trying to keep his own fear under control so he could reassure her.

Before the crash, Callaway had not planned to buy his daughter a cellphone anytime soon. Afterward, he bought her a flip phone so she would have a way to reach him in an emergency.

The station reported Wednesday night that Lily remained shaken by what happened, even though neither child was injured. Callaway wants the driver held accountable for putting the children in danger.

For this family, the crash changed a basic decision about how their daughter could reach them:

ADVERTISEMENT

And the danger was not confined to the school bus.

WESH 2 interviewed Leeanna Feeley, who said her car was one of the vehicles struck before the bus collision. She said the impact sent her to the hospital and that it took a moment to process what had happened.

Feeley had just dropped off her 2-year-old daughter before the crash. She told the station the vehicle was hit near the rear, where her daughter would otherwise have been riding.

WESH reported that East County Road 466 and County Road 103 were shut down while crews responded. The station also confirmed that none of the children aboard the school bus was injured.

Deputies initially announced charges including fleeing law enforcement, driving with a suspended license, marijuana possession and leaving the crash scene. They also said Williams already had two outstanding Sumter County warrants, for fleeing and eluding and driving with a suspended license.

That attempted traffic stop became a criminal case involving multiple damaged vehicles and a bus carrying children:

FOX 35 reported that Williams appeared in court Wednesday, August 26, and was ordered held without bond. He remained listed as in custody in the Sumter County jail’s public records Thursday.

The charges are allegations, not convictions. The sheriff’s office said additional charges were possible.

All 19 children made it through the collision without physical injuries, and that is an enormous relief. Their parents should never have had to get that phone call.

ADVERTISEMENT

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport. View the original article here.

 

Join The Conversation. Leave a Comment.