Off-duty Gainesville officer rear-ends school bus, four hospitalized

An off-duty Gainesville Police Department officer suffered very serious but not life-threatening injuries Friday morning after his marked Ford Explorer struck the rear of a stopped Marion County school bus. The collision occurred at approximately 6:55 a.m. at the intersection of Southwest 49th Avenue Road and Southwest 82nd Place Road in Marion County, Florida, while the bus was stopped to pick up children at a designated bus stop.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the school bus was traveling southbound in the outside lane with its flashing warning lights activated and stop signs extended. The off-duty officer, driving in the same lane behind the bus, failed to stop and his vehicle's front collided with the bus's rear. Thirteen students were aboard the bus at the time of impact.

Four individuals were transported to nearby hospitals following the crash: the off-duty officer (with very serious injuries), the bus driver (37 years old), a bus aide (54 years old), and one 9-year-old student. The bus driver, aide, and student were hospitalized with either minor injuries or taken as a precaution, according to reports from the Florida Highway Patrol and responding authorities. No citations or charges have been announced, and the officer's identity has not been released.