SWAIN COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — Eight people were hurt and a bus driver charged after a Great Smoky Mountains railroad train slammed into a charter bus at the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC).
Six students and two staff members were among those injured in the crash.
It happened around noon on Tuesday as the train was arriving at slow speed at the NOC. That’s when investigators say a tour bus from Georgia Military College Prep School crossed into its path.
North Carolina Highway Patrol has charged 59-year-old Charlie Poole of Milledgeville, Georgia, with failing to yield right of way at a railroad crossing.
The bus, which was carrying ninth-grade boys, was on a trip to the NOC, which is west of Bryson City in the Nantahala Gorge.
According to the school, six students received minor injuries and were treated and released from local hospitals.
Two faculty members also suffered minor injuries. Troopers said one of the adult staff members was transported from Harris Regional in Sylva to Mission Hospital.
No one was injured on the train, and arrangements were made to transport about 450 passengers back to Bryson City.
All parents were notified of the incident.
An inquiry into exactly how the accident happened is under way and involves state and federal agencies.
President of the NOC William Irving said one of his staff members witnessed proper protocol with the train’s horn and lights working. He added that no such accidents have occurred at this location before.
“The train has been operating here for over 30 years,” Irving said. “And the NOC has been operating here for 45 years, and we’ve never had anything like this before.”
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