Driving while texting is a wildly dangerous trend that already puts countless people in danger on the roads every day, but far too many people think the seemingly innocuous practice isn’t as risky as recent media campaigns make it appear. They would be wrong.
Investigators in Knoxville, Tenn. released a report on a fatal collision between school buses last year which shows the real danger of texting while driving, especially if you are behind the wheel of a school bus.
Accident investigators reported a Tennessee school bus driver was texting at the time of a severe collision between two school buses that killed two young students and an aspiring teacher.
According to the statement from Knoxville police, school bus driver James Davenport had sent and received several text messages in the time leading up to the collision. They also reported the investigation file had been turned over to county prosecutors.
Police also said they were informed that Davenport died this week as they concluded their investigation, apparently from natural causes.
At the time of the accident, the two buses were traveling in opposite directions on Asheville Highway when Davenport suddenly swerved across the concrete median and collided with the other school bus. Two young girls and an aspiring teacher all died from injuries inflicted when the second bus was flipped on its side.
It isn’t hard to find drivers who think it is safe to bend the rules to respond to a quick text message, but the fatal accident last year makes it clear just how high the stakes of texting while driving are. No message is worth risking the lives of you and other drivers or passengers.
