LAKE COUNTY — Multiple people were injured after police say an impaired church bus driver went off the road and onto an embankment Monday evening.
Indiana State Police were called to the scene just after 10:30 p.m. on the I-80/90 Indiana Toll Road. Troopers say the 82-year-old bus driver, for an unknown reason, drove straight off the roadway and into an embankment between the exit and the interstate. When the bus drove into the area the underbelly hit a gravel and dirt embankment and lifted the tires from the ground, causing people to be tossed about.
State Police say the Jesus Saves Missionary Baptist Church bus was returning to Gary from a trip to the United Center in Chicago at the time of the crash. There were 47 passengers, including children, and they were all checked for pain at the scene. Five patients, an adult and four children, were taken to the hospital for leg, head and neck injuries.
Troopers determined the driver was impaired and he was taken to a local hospital to be tested. After failing that test, the driver is facing multiple charges including operating while intoxicated and endangerment.
The crash remains under investigation by Indiana State Police.
