DUDLEY, Mass. — A school bus driver here was arrested for allegedly driving while intoxicated after he crashed his school bus with students on board on Thursday.
At approximately 3 p.m., police and fire and emergency medical personnel responded to a school bus crash, according to the Dudley Police Department. Upon arrival, officers observed a school bus in the eastbound travel lane with wires from a utility pole lying across its roof. The bus was on its afternoon drop-off route, and there were 11 students on board at the time. No one was injured.
During conversation and interaction with bus driver Scott Poirier, officers suspected that Poirier may have been under the influence of alcohol. After the officers conducted field sobriety tests, they believed Poirier was operating under the influence, and he was placed under arrest. He was found to be nearly two times over the legal limit when he crashed the bus, according to CBS Boston.
The students were transported home by a second bus shortly after the accident.
Poirier appeared in court on Friday, facing charges of operating under the influence of alcohol, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, and child endangerment while operating under the influence. Prosecutors said that Poirier was drunk when he lost control of the bus and hit the telephone pole, causing wires to fall on top of the bus, CBS Boston reports. They added that police officers saw Poirier fall down the bus steps before trying to compose himself, and that he told police he hadn’t drunk any alcohol but had taken DayQuil and NyQuil earlier that day, according to the news source.
A judge ordered Poirier to stay away from kids and alcohol, and he was released and placed under house arrest, according to the news source. He has been suspended by his employer, First Student, while the crash is under investigation, CBS Boston reports.
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