School bus empty when it crashed into Wheeling home
A two-vehicle crash pushed a school bus with no kids aboard through a backyard fence and into a home off Dundee Road on Tuesday afternoon.
The bus was traveling south on Schoenbeck Road around 3:30 p.m. when it was hit by a car going west on Dundee Road and pushed into the yard, according to Wheeling police.
Wheeling Deputy Chief John Teevans said both drivers were walking and talking at the scene, but taken to area hospitals to be checked for nonlife threatening injuries.
Homeowner Don Johnson was watching TV when he heard a crash, which he said is not too unusual living near such a busy intersection, but when he got up to see what had happened he realized the crash was into his own house.
“I didn’t see it, I just heard it,” Johnson said.
Johnson called 911 and let his wife, Rose, who was at work at nearby Indian Trails Public Library, know that she needed to come home early.
The bus narrowly missed a large tree in the yard and slightly hit the house. Johnson said the damage is mainly to the kitchen, with some flooding in the basement.
This isn’t the first time the Johnsons have had to worry about an accident near their home.
They remembered an accident from 20 years ago where a car crashed through the fence and went all the way to the next door neighbor’s yard.
“This is a really busy corner and I guess the accidents come with it,” Rose said.
“I’m just glad there were no kids on the bus, it could have been much worse. The house can be fixed.”
The couple said they were thankful no one was seriously injured and were taking the exciting afternoon in stride.
“This is why I don’t do dishes, look what could happen,” Don joked of the location where the bus hit right into the family’s kitchen sink.
No citations have been issued in the crash yet, and Teevans said it is still under investigation.