Religion

More Than 30 Hospitalized after Bus Returning from Church Youth Retreat Crashes



A coach bus traveling back to Manheim, Pennsylvania from Lake Champion in New York following a church retreat for high school students crashed into trees off highway I-81 on Sunday, sending all but one of the more than 30 people on the bus to the hospital.

According to The Christian Post, the bus was transporting 31 sophomore and freshman girls and volunteers from the multi-campus Lives Changed By Christ megachurch.

PA Homepage reports that around 2:30 pm, the bus driver lost control of the vehicle. The bus, going downhill, crossed over State Route 25, where it hit a guide rail and then an embankment before traveling an additional 50 yards into a wooded area.

“We had to pretty much work off the ladders alongside the bus to get the patients out. Everyone pretty much was inside the bus still when we got here, and we had mostly everybody transported probably within the hour,” Tremont Fire Chief Brian Eisenacher told PA Homepage.

At least 20 different EMS units are reported to have responded to the crash scene.

Two other buses were traveling alongside this one, but neither of those were involved in the crash.

According to News Nation Now, following the crash, four people were airlifted to one of several local hospitals. In total, 32 people, including the driver, were hospitalized following the crash.

“All 31 of the freshman and sophomore girls and their leaders on the bus sustained various levels of injury, and all but one were transported to five local hospitals for care. Four were taken by Life Flight to either Hershey Medical Center or the Geisinger Hospital in Danville,” LCBC Senior Pastor David Ashcraft wrote in an announcement on the church’s website on Sunday.

As of Tuesday, ten people remain in the hospital but are making “positive steps in their recovery journey,” Ashcraft shared in an update post on the incident.

News Nation Now reported on Monday that three victims were in critical condition. 

Police are currently looking into the bus company, Premier Number 1 Limousine Service, and the driver to determine the cause of the crash.

Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Milos Muller


Kayla Koslosky has been the Editor of ChristianHeadlines.com since 2018. She has B.A. degrees in English and History and previously wrote for and was the managing editor of the Yellow Jacket newspaper. She has written on her blog since 2012 and has also contributed to IBelieve.com and Crosswalk.com.



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