School Bus Driver Dead After Tree Falls on Bus in Avon: Officials

An Avon Public Schools bus driver is dead after what appears to be a tragic accident in Avon. 

A tree fell on the bus, which then hit a utility pole on Country Club Road around 8:55 a.m. Wednesday, according to police and school officials. 

The school bus driver, 52-year-old Steve Roussel, was the only person on the bus and he was on his way back to the bus station, about a mile and a half away.

School officials said it appears that gusty wind caused the accident.

"Please send your thoughts and prayers to anyone who might be injured," a statement from Avon Public Schools says, in part.  

Specialty Transportation also released a statement about the tragedy.

"It is a sad day at Specialty Transportation with the passing of one of our School Bus drivers.  We ask that your thoughts and prayers are with the driver’s family during this difficult time.  The driver was part of our corporate family and was an exceptional employee whom was well respected both by the company and the entire community he served.  I’d like to thank the Town of Avon’s Board of Education for coordinating grief counseling for our employees that have been adversely affected by this tragedy.  Our thoughts and prayers are with the family, our employees and the students and teachers of Avon that have tragically lost an exceptional individual," the statement says.

Country Club Road was closed from Wednesday morning until early Thursday morning, but has reopened.

Eversource has responded to the scene and turned power off to the utility pole.

A limb from another tree also fell further down the road, hit power lines and caused a transformer fire.

The Eversource website says there are 376 power outages in Avon, or 4 percent of the utility company's customer base in town.

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