School Bus Runs Off Highway 101, Killing Student, 13, and Counselor

A 13-year-old boy and a school employee were killed Tuesday when a school bus tumbled down an embankment on U.S. Highway 101 in San Luis Obispo County.

The small bus, bound for the California School for the Deaf in Fremont, overturned when the 70-year-old driver failed to make a left-hand curve on the highway just north of Paso Robles about 8:05 a.m., said California Highway Patrol Officer Scott Lee.

The bus was carrying four children; the driver, Wendell Hammar; and Carla Perriera, 40, a counselor at the school. The vehicle hit a steel guardrail and rolled over several times down the steep embankment, landing on a highway onramp.

Perriera, of San Jose, and the boy--Nikolas Alva Bryant, according to the coroner’s office--died after being thrown from the van, Lee said.

The vehicle was operated by a private contractor, West Valley Charter Service of Campbell, the CHP said.

Lee said the cause of the accident remained under investigation.

Three students and the driver were taken to hospitals. Two of the students were in serious condition.

The school has about 500 students, about 300 of whom stay on the grounds during the week and go home on weekends. Tuesday was the first day of classes after the holiday break, a school official said.