Maine bus crashes north of Boston, driver hurt

State police said 22 other people on the bus, including students and athletic staff, had only minor injuries.

The driver, whose identity was not immediately released, was taken by helicopter to a Boston hospital.

The bus was southbound on Interstate 95 at about 8:30 p.m. when it crossed the median, went across the northbound lane and down an embankment into woods near Georgetown, a town of about 8,000 residents 30 miles from Boston.

Georgetown Fire Chief Al Beardsley said it was a miracle no other cars were involved.

"This is a very heavily traveled road, day and night, and for a bus that size to basically catapult across the road, I couldn't imagine being northbound and seeing that thing coming at me," Beardsley said at the scene.

The University of Maine said Coach Richard Barron was treated for minor facial cuts and three others — players Ashleigh Roberts and Corinne Wellington, and Samantha Wheeler, the team's director of basketball operations — were taken to a hospital for observation. The team was en route to play Boston University on Wednesday night. That game has been postponed, according to the basketball schedule posted on UMaine's website.

"We're very thankful that this accident was not any worse than it was," Robert Dana, vice president for student affairs and dean of students, said in a statement. "The thoughts of the entire University of Maine community are with the bus driver and the team as they contend with this very frightening event."