The Latest: Sheriff: About 45 people were aboard crashed bus in Alabama

The latest on the crash of a tour bus that was returning to Texas from Disney World (all times local):

1:50 p.m.

A bus carrying Texas students whose bandmates were involved in the wreck of another bus on Interstate 10 in Alabama has returned to a Houston-area high school.

The bus pulled into Channelview High School east of Houston under police escort Tuesday afternoon.

The bus was one of two carrying the school band and chaperones back from a band competition at Disney World in Florida.

The other bus careened off the interstate early Tuesday in Alabama and down a ravine before toppling onto its side. The driver of the bus was killed and about three dozen others were hurt, mostly teenagers.

The bus that returned to the school later in the day was driven past a throng of reporters and into a part of the school campus out of public view.

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12:45 p.m.

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration records show that in past two years, the company that owns the bus the crashed in Alabama has been involved in four other crashes, with one of those also involving a fatality.

No one was injured or killed in the other three crashes involving First Class Tours Inc. The agency’s records don’t indicate fault.

The driver was killed Tuesday morning when a bus carrying Texas high school students returning home from a Disney World trip plunged into a ravine near the Alabama-Florida line. Many others were injured.

According to a Texas Peace Officer’s Crash Report, the previous crash involving a fatality took place in May 2017 in Houston, when one of the company’s buses failed to yield the right of way as it turned left and fatally struck a pedestrian who was in a crosswalk.

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10:10 a.m.

An Alabama state trooper says the driver was killed when a tour bus carrying Texas high school students home from a Disney World trip plunged into a ravine.

Many others were injured in the Tuesday morning crash near the Alabama-Florida line on Interstate 10. About 45 people were aboard the bus.

Baldwin County Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack says the bus entered the median on Interstate 10 and then fell into the 50-foot (15-meter) ravine. It wasn’t immediately clear why.

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10 a.m.

The company whose tour bus was carrying Texas high school students home from a Disney World trip when it plunged into a ravine near the Alabama-Florida line says it pledges its assistance in cooperating with authorities.

One person was killed in the Tuesday morning crash and many others were injured. In a statement, First Class Tours says their prayers are with the injured and their families.

Baldwin County Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack says the bus entered the median on Interstate 10 and then fell into the 50-foot (15-meter) ravine Tuesday at about 5:30 a.m. It wasn’t immediately clear why.

9:40 a.m.

A sheriff says about 45 people were on board a bus that was carrying Texas high school students home from a Disney World trip when it plunged into a ravine near the Alabama-Florida line, killing one.

Baldwin County Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack says all of the people on board were brought to 10 hospitals in Alabama and Florida.

The sheriff says the bus entered the median on Interstate 10 and then fell into the 50-foot ravine Tuesday at about 5:30 a.m. It wasn’t immediately clear why. The interstate was closed down in both directions after the crash.

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9:05 a.m.

One person is dead after a charter tour bus carrying students on a school trip from Houston, Texas, plunged into a ravine near the Alabama-Florida line.

Baldwin County Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack confirmed the death Tuesday morning while talking to new reporters.

Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office Major Anthony Lowery said the bus plunged off Interstate 10 into a deep ravine early Tuesday and multiple helicopters responded.

WKRG-TV is reporting that 12 to 20 people have been injured, and that officials say the bus was returning to Houston from a school trip.

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7:35 a.m.

Authorities in Alabama say a charter tour bus carrying students on a school trip from Houston, Texas, has plunged into a ravine, with multiple injuries reported.

Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office Major Anthony Lowery said the bus plunged off Interstate 10 into a deep ravine Tuesday morning, and multiple helicopters are responding.

WKRG-TV is reporting that 12 to 20 people have been injured, and that officials say the bus was returning to Houston from a school trip.

WEAR-TV reports that the charter bus was carrying at least 52 people and the crash happened around 6 a.m.

Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack says both lanes on the interstate have been closed. Traffic has been diverted and Alabama State troopers are asking people to avoid the area.

(Image: Channelview High School Falcon Band at Disney World. Channelview Falcon Band/Facebook)

(Associated Press, copyright 2018)

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