School bus involved in traffic accident

A Shawnee Community Unit School District No. 84 school bus was involved in a traffic accident Monday afternoon, Feb. 13.

The school district posted a news release on its Facebook page which reported that the bus was traveling north on Illinois Route 3 when the accident occurred. The bus was carrying one student and the driver.

The bus was involved in a multi-vehicle accident which occurred at approximately 3:10 p.m. on the Alexander-Union County line.

Shawnee Community Unit District No. 84 administrators responded to the scene. Various emergency services agencies were already on the scene.

The driver and the student were transported to a local hospital for further evaluation. 

The news release posted on social media closed by stating that Shawnee Community Unit District No. 84 “is so thankful for the swift response of all of the first responders and emergency agencies to today’s accident.”

An update posted on the school district’s Facebook page at 6:30 p.m. shared that the bus driver and student had been treated and released from the hospital.

The Union County Sheriff’s Office in Jonesboro posted a message on social media Monday afternoon that Illinois Route 3 had been closed due to a traffic accident.

The highway was closed from Illinois Route 146 W at the State Route 3 Ware intersection to the Union-Alexander county line in McClure.

Traffic was being asked to avoid the area and to detour through Olive Branch and State Route 127. 

At about 7:30 p.m. Monday, the sheriff’s office posted on social media that the road had been cleared and Route 3 was back open to traffic.