JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An accident involving a tractor-trailer and a private school van on Commonwealth Avenue at Interstate 295 Wednesday morning sent one driver and five children to the hospital, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
According to Sgt. L.J. Johnson, the children and driver of the van suffered minor injuries in the accident. The children are between the ages of 9 and 15.
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"I was pretty scared, but I got in our church van and ran down there to check on them and see what was going on," Heart to Heart Christian Academy principal Robert Warlick said. "I am eternally grateful that God did protect our kids. This is our chapel day, so to go into our chapel knowing that our kids were in an accident was pretty scary for us, but at the end of the day we knew that God had prevailed, so we're thankful."
Warlick said their were eight students in the van with the driver.
Two westbound lanes on Commonwealth Avenue near Interstate 295 north were blocked for few hours, reopening just before 9 a.m.
The van was headed to school when it was hit by the the big rig. Witnesses say the truck turned left from Commonwealth Avenue onto the I-295 northbound entrance ramp on a yellow flashing light. Police said the van was heading west on Commonwealth and had the right of way.
JSO says the driver of the tractor-trailer was cited with failure to yield the right of way.