Crime & Safety
Plow Driver Cited after Crashing into School Bus
Three schoolgirls were hurt in the accident.
Portsmouth Police cited a 41-year-old plow driver from Little Compton for failing to stop at a stop sign after a school bus accident Wednesday morning that sent three schoolgirls to the hospital with minor injuries.
Portsmouth Police Major Brian P. Peters said in a release that Brian Wheeler, 41, was cited after he allegedly drove through the stop sign at the intersection of Middle Road and Union Street, striking the rear of the bus.
The bus, owned by First Student of Portsmouth, was heading to Portsmouth Middle School.
The accident caused the rear quarter panel of the bus to be peeled away.
Wheeler was reportedly driving a 1995 Ford dump truck equipped with a plow. The truck is owned by Mello's Construction of Middletown, police said.
Three girls, aged 10, 13 and 15, were transported to Newport Hospital for complaints of pain, police said.
The crash happened at 7:41 a.m.
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