MEMPHIS, Tenn.– A school bus driven by a Marshall County supervisor was involved in a two-vehicle crash on Mt. Pleasant Road and Taska Road on Thursday.
The Mississippi Highway Patrol said the bus was traveling west on Mt. Pleasant Road around 3:20 p.m. when it collided with a truck that was traveling south on Taska Road.
There were 12 children onboard the bus during the crash.
Marshall County Superintendent Carrie Skelton said in a statement that no students were injured but the bus driver, 77-year-old Eddie Dixon, who is also the county supervisor, was injured in the crash.
H.W. Byers fifth grader Byson Peacock was on the bus when it collided with a pickup truck and landed in a ditch.
“The older kids opened the back and we had to climb out,” he said.
Dixon was airlifted to Regional One but there is no word on his condition.
Dixon has been with the county for 24 years and the school district for over 40 years. He is well known to many in the community, so when residents like Naomi Rubin heard the news they came to see if he was okay.
“My kids went to school with him, he taught my grandkids. He’s a lovely person,” Rubin said. “It hurt my heart, it hurt my heart to know what shape he was in. The only thing there is to do is try and pray for him.”
The students were released from the scene. H.W. Byers said the homecoming parade has been canceled due to the accident.
The crash remains under investigation by the Mississippi Highway Patrol.
WREG is working to gather more information. Check back for updates.