Crime, Law and Justice

School bus driver narrowly avoids head-on collision with semi in central Minnesota

Video courtesy of Mille Lacs County Sheriff's Office.
An Onamia school bus driver is being called a hero for avoiding a head-on collision with a semi-truck Wednesday on U.S. Highway 169. This video contains expletive language.

An Onamia school bus driver is being called a hero for avoiding a head-on collision with a semi-truck Wednesday on U.S. Highway 169.

The Mille Lacs County Sheriff’s Office says a northbound semi crossed over into the lane of the southbound school bus north of Shakopee Lake Road shortly before 7:15 a.m.

Dramatic video from the school bus released by the sheriff’s office shows the driver, Brian Lathrop, making a quick maneuver to avoid colliding head-on with the semi. Sheriff Kyle Burton said Lathrop’s action “undoubtedly saved many lives.”

Instead, the vehicles sideswiped near the rear passenger side of the bus. Two students were checked out for minor injuries.

The sheriff says there were four students and four staff on the bus at the time of the near-collision.

The Minnesota State Patrol and the sheriff’s office are investigating the incident.