DALLAS – The driver of a concrete truck that struck a Central Texas school bus last week reportedly told investigators he took cocaine the morning of the crash.
Those reports emerged soon after video was released showing the truck veering into the path of the Hays CISD bus.
A preschooler on the bus and the driver of a third vehicle were killed in the crash. Video shows that concrete truck crossing into the lane of that school bus.
School leaders are praising the bus driver for reacting and possibly avoiding more loss of life.
The Hays CISD school bus was bringing 44 pre-k students and 11 adults back from the Bastrop Zoo last Friday when a concrete truck veered in its path.
FOX 4 has muted the audio after the collision out of sensitivity to those involved.
The crash killed 5-year-old Ulises Rodriguez Montoya, who was on board the bus.
A 33-year-old man in a third vehicle was also killed.
This week, the district’s superintendent praised the bus driver’s reactions.
“She was able to take an evasive right and keep the bus from being hit squarely,” said Hays CISD Superintendent Eric Wright. “And I think she saved all of the rest of the lives as a result of her driving ability.”
The video’s release came just hours before KEYE-TV obtained court documents saying the concrete truck driver, 42-year-old Jerry Hernandez, told investigators he smoked marijuana the night before the crash, only got a few hours of sleep and consumed cocaine in the morning before work.
The crash happened around 2 p.m. The driver reportedly refused a voluntary blood draw. He has not yet been charged.
The bus involved in the crash did not have seatbelts.
In 2017, the Texas Legislature passed a bill that required seatbelts on any newly acquired school buses. The district says the bus involved in the Bastrop County crash was from 2011.
“We haven’t gotten the investigation report yet from DPS, so we will wait on that to see if seat belts would have made a difference,” Wright said. “But we are planning on accelerating our timeline to make sure that all of our buses in the future will have seatbelts.”
For now, the district says it’s focused on supporting its families at Tom Green Elementary and all of the students forever impacted by the crash.
The DPS investigation into the crash is still ongoing. It’s unclear when it might make a decision on any charges.
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