Fire on Bus Injures 8 Kids, 1 Adult

Eight middle-school students and one adult were hospitalized briefly Friday after their chartered bus caught fire in Costa Mesa on the way to a weekend field trip, officials said.

None of the 55 students or chaperons from Yavneh Hebrew Academy in Los Angeles was seriously injured, investigators said. Those sent to local hospitals were treated for minor smoke inhalation and released.

The students were on their way to the Palace Park entertainment center in Irvine to begin a weekend getaway. About 11 a.m., as the bus was traveling south on the San Diego Freeway near Harbor Boulevard, a right rear tire came loose and flew in the air, said Capt. Scott Broussard of the Costa Mesa Fire Department. Sparks began to fly, igniting one side of the bus, he said.

The driver, Bob Herron of First Class Charter, stopped the bus on the right shoulder, and the students scrambled off.

“We thought it was going to blow up,” said Elan Javanfart, 13, of Los Angeles. “We were screaming for everyone to hurry up and get off.”

Gabriel Siegal, 12, of Los Angeles said he was listening to music on his headphones in the rear of the bus when he heard a loud pop, smelled fumes and saw flames along the side of the vehicle.

“It was scary,” he said. “The seats were shaking and everyone was screaming.”

When firefighters arrived, they escorted the children 200 yards away, where the group waited for another bus. They watched as firefighters removed backpacks, sleeping bags and luggage from the damaged bus.

Said Rabbi Moshe Amster, who was riding in a van accompanying the bus: “Thank goodness everyone is safe.”