CHESTERFIELD: Emotions run high as accident facts unfold

By Amber Cox, Special Writer
   CHESTERFIELD — In a tumultuous week for the Chesterfield community where an 11-year-old girl died in a school bus accident and three other students were seriously injured, Mayor Michael Hlubik tried to console residents.
   Addressing the Feb. 23 Township Committee meeting, the mayor said it was difficult for him to speak about the fatality.
   ”John Donne said it best, to paraphrase what he said, ‘Any man’s death diminishes me.’ I think that’s true for all of us. I think it hits the closest when it’s a young person who hasn’t had the chance to experience life yet,” he said.
   Mayor Hlubik asked everyone to pray for the Tezsla and Zdybel families and for all of the children that were on the bus that morning.
   ”There’s nothing that I can say to make any sense of it,” he said. “It’s a sad situation. I think the best thing we can do for this family, obviously, is be there for them. Come together and offer them support and condolences. I think it’s very important that they know we care. I believe in the power of prayer and I would ask all of you to pray for this family.”
   While the community tries to heal, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which has been in town investigating the crash site, discussed its preliminary findings of facts at the Municipal Building on Feb. 24.
   NTSB Chief Investigator Pete Kotowski said it will be 12 to 16 months before the investigative team presents final findings and recommendations in Washington, D.C.
   The accident occurred around 8:15 a.m. Feb. 16 at the intersection of Old York Road and Route 528 when a school bus collided with a dump truck killing 11-year-old Isabelle Tezsla.
   Isabelle’s two sisters, Sophie and Natalie, 11 were also critically injured in the crash along with Jonathan Zdybel, 11.
   Natalie was released from the hospital on Feb. 22.
   The truck, driven by Michael Caporale, 38, of New Egypt, hit the back driver’s side of the bus swinging it around and wedging it between two poles. The bus, driven by John Tieman, 66, of Beverly. was just three stops away from arriving at the Chesterfield Elementary School.
   According to Mr. Kotowski, Mr. Tieman stopped forward of the stop limit sign and moved forward into the intersection.
   ”The school bus driver stated to investigators that he never saw the approaching truck,” Mr. Kotowski said.
   Mr. Kotowski added that Mr. Caporale reported that he was driving about 45 mph, the posted speed limit, and saw the bus move into the intersection.
   ”The driver did state during his interview that he applied the brakes and turned left prior to the collision,” Mr. Kotowski said.
   After the truck collided with the bus, the bus rotated rapidly in a counterclockwise direction and continued about 46 feet in the northeasterly direction.
   Mr. Kotowski said the NTSB will be conducting an in-depth analysis using three-dimensional laser scanning modeling and accident reconstruction during the upcoming months to determine the speeds of the vehicles as well as the time and distance positions prior to and at the time of impact.
   He added that a number of factors will be looked at and examined including training of both drivers, human factors, sight line availability and the mechanical workings of each vehicle.
   ”The line of sight evaluation determined that in some locations line of sight was obstructed due to environmental features of the intersection,” Mr. Kotowski said. “The NTSB will be evaluating whether this reduced line of sight contributed in any way to the cause of the crash.”
   Mr. Kotowski added that when the NTSB was conducting observations at the same time of day that the accident occurred, most drivers traveling on Old York Road stopped beyond the stop line.
   Blood samples of each driver were also taken and the results are pending.
   The NTSB will also be looking at vehicle factors.
   A mechanical inspection was completed on the school bus and no operation deficiencies of the major components of the vehicle were detected.
   ”This vehicle would have passed a typical roadside inspection,” Mr. Kotowski said. “The electronic engine control module was downloaded but there was no accident related data available.”
   The 2004 truck, owned by Herman’s trucking, had just left a construction site near the New Jersey Turnpike and had a load of asphalt type material in the bed.
   ”The weight of the vehicle in combination with the load was slightly over the registered 80,000-pound weight limit by about 5 percent,” Mr. Kotowski said. “The electronic engine control of the truck was downloaded and that examination is continuing.”
   Preliminary inspections of the truck showed no reportable deficiencies in the suspension, steering and tires.
   The NTSB is continuing its inspection of the braking system.
   Mr. Tieman was properly licensed and had begun driving a school bus about three weeks ago and had driven the Chesterfield route for only nine days. Mr. Caporale was properly licensed and certified to drive the truck.
   No charges have been filed and the investigation is ongoing.
   The NTSB is also working to discover how many of the students were wearing the seatbelts that the bus was equipped with.
   Investigators are also talking with the passengers of the bus to try and discover more information about the collision.