Philomath High School’s wrestling team got a scare Friday night following its season-opening tournament at Cascade High School when a pickup rear-ended its school bus at a railroad crossing on Highway 34 just west of Oakville Road.
Athletic Director Mike Hood said he received word that everybody aboard the bus escaped the incident without any injuries. PHS coach Troy Woosley reported that the pickup’s driver and passenger were able to get out of the pickup and appeared to have minor injuries.
“I tried to calm the driver and the kids,” Woosley said about those first minutes following the crash. “Coach (James) Kohn and I got the driver and passenger out because the truck was smoking real bad.”
The crash occurred at about 7:30 p.m. in an area on Highway 34 that’s roughly 5 miles east of Corvallis. The team was headed back to Philomath after competing in the Perry Burlison Invitational at Cascade High, which is located just outside Turner.
“Several cops were on scene within 2 minutes and an ambulance in about 10 minutes,” Woosley said. “EMTs (emergency medical technicians) checked out our kids.”
Mid Columbia Bus Co. provides transportation services for the Philomath School District. School buses are required by law to stop at railroad crossings.
Woosley said the bus had just started to go over the tracks after stopping when the pickup rear-ended the bus. The coach believes the pickup was traveling “close to full speed.”
“It was a heck of a jolt to us and the truck was completely totaled,” Woosley said. “It had no front end left.”
Hood said all parents were notified of the crash and about half went to the scene to pick up their kids. The rest remained until another bus arrived — a wait that Woosley estimated at about 35 minutes. The team got back to the high school at around 8:30 p.m.
