By BOB MARTIN
Eagle Times Staff
WALPOLE, N.H. — A man was killed on Wednesday afternoon when he reportedly drove across the yellow center line of Route 12 and hit a Fall Mountain School District bus containing two students, seriously injuring the bus driver.
On Wednesday at 3:13 p.m. the Walpole Police Department responded to a two-vehicle accident in the area of Connector Road on Route 12, according to a release by Walpole Police Chief Justin Sanctuary.
An initial investigation found that a 2006 Saab 9-3 driven by Dietrich Kern Praska, 22, of Marlborough, was traveling south on Route 12 and crossed the yellow line and collided with a 2017 Chevrolet Collins school bus traveling north. Praska was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the report.
Marie Robbins, 65, of Alstead, was driving the bus, and was airlifted to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, Massachusetts. The two students on the bus were both taken by ambulance to Cheshire Medical Center in Keene, New Hampshire and to Springfield Hospital in Springfield, Vermont to treat minor injuries. The press release stated that the condition of those injured was unknown.
The Walpole Police Department requested the New Hampshire State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction (C.A.R.) unit. Also assisting was N.H. State Police Troop C, Walpole Fire / EMS, Westmoreland Fire Department, Cheshire EMS and Warren-Wentworth Ambulance Service.
Route 12 was closed to traffic between Halls Crossing and Blackjack Crossing Roads until about 7:30 p.m.
Interim Superintendent Debra Manseau said in an email on Thursday morning that she did not know the conditions of the children or bus driver.
Manseau sent an email to members of the school district on Wednesday night informing them of the crash involving the bus that was coming from Keene, but did not include information about the students or driver. She said families of those involved had been contacted.
Manseau said that if a student or their family member felt they needed support, they could contact the school principal or its counselors for assistance.
Messages were left with Chief Sanctuary and the Walpole Fire Departments, but all were not returned by deadline.
When asked if alcohol or drugs was a factor, a dispatcher at Walpole Police said the crash is being actively investigated. She was unsure if there was a camera on the bus that would provide evidence, and said it was all part of their investigation.
The cause of the accident is under investigation and anyone who witnessed the accident or has information related to the collision is urged to call Officer Jonah Merkle at the Walpole Police Department at 603-445-2058, or the 24-hour dispatch line at 603-355-2000.
