A catastrophic collision between an unlicensed teenage driver and a school bus resulted in injuries for nine people, including three teenagers who were said to be in critical condition.
The accident took place on April 27 when 16-year-old Erick Fuentes, who was driving a Honda Accord, lost control of the vehicle on Lake Road in New Castle, New York. The car then collided with an oncoming school bus, severely injuring three teens from Fox Lane High School who were inside the Honda.
Investigators revealed that Fuentes swerved into the path of the oncoming bus before the impact. A GoFundMe page established for Fuentes disclosed the extent of his injuries, which include a fractured spine, a broken neck and leg, and removal of a portion of his skull due to a hematoma.
Paramedics initially pronounced 17-year-old Jonathan Martinez, one of the critically injured passengers, dead at the scene but managed to revive him. Martinez is on life support, suffering from a fractured femur, a brain bleed, a ruptured spleen, and spinal injuries.
The third critically injured teenager, 16-year-old Axel Cantor, underwent more than five hours of surgery. He was also placed on a ventilator and sustained a brain hemorrhage, collapsed lungs, liver bleeding, and two broken legs.
To help cover mounting medical expenses, the families of the severely injured teenagers launched GoFundMe campaigns, raising over $142,000 in contributions so far.
Authorities reported that the five individuals aboard the school bus sustained only minor injuries in the crash.
The exact cause of Fuentes losing control of the vehicle remains unknown, and it is still undetermined whether he possessed a learner’s permit at the time of the accident.
