New Bloomfield school bus topples into ditch

A New Bloomfield School District bus sits in a ditch off of Couny Road 432 after it slid off the road Monday. Trooper Andrew Armstrong of the Missouri State Highway Patrol investigates the accident.
A New Bloomfield School District bus sits in a ditch off of Couny Road 432 after it slid off the road Monday. Trooper Andrew Armstrong of the Missouri State Highway Patrol investigates the accident.

NEW BLOOMFIELD, Mo. - A New Bloomfield School District bus slid off a county road after school Monday when it was making its drops.

Trooper Andrew Armstrong of the Missouri Highway Patrol said the bus driver and 11 students were aboard when the bus got onto the soft shoulder of County Road 432 and struck a ditch. He said there were no injuries from the 4:05 p.m. accident. The bus was lying sideways in the ditch when responders arrived.

The patrol, New Bloomfield Fire Protection District, the Callaway County Sheriff's Department and the Callaway County Ambulance District all responded to the call. New Bloomfield Elementary Principal Julie Gerloff arrived on the scene to check on the welfare of the students. She said she was glad everyone was safe.

"We were very impressed with the response we got from the Callaway County services," Gerloff said.

Interim Superintendent Thomas Baugh said Armstrong told him the bus driver got over onto the side of the road when another vehicle approached and the soft shoulder sucked the bus right into the ditch. He said the weather has made the county roads difficult for the drivers.

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