Bus crash injures 21 in Wednesday storm

LAFAYETTE – A winter storm that brought the first significant snowfall to much of Indiana left roadways snow-covered and slick Wednesday and caused numerous crashes, including one involving a Greyhound bus that spun out of control on Interstate 65, slightly injuring 21 people.\nThe storm also forced a Delta regional jet bound for Cincinnati to make an emergency landing Wednesday morning at the Indianapolis International Airport.\nThe pilot returned to Indianapolis shortly after takeoff when cockpit sensors detected ice buildup on the wing flaps at about 8:20 a.m., airport spokeswoman Susan Sullivan said. The plane landed safely seven minutes later.\nWednesday’s storm dropped 3 to 5 inches of snow on the state’s northern and central counties, prompting dozens of schools to delay the start of classes or close for the day.\nIndiana State Police posts across northern and central Indiana reported scores of weather-related crashes as the winter storm moved across \nthe region.\nThe bus crash along I-65 near Lafayette left 21 people injured, said Matthew Oates, spokesman for St. Elizabeth Regional Health in Lafayette. Each was released after treatment at one of two \nLafayette hospitals.\nLater, a second Greyhound bus collided with a pickup truck and left I-65 about 25 miles north of Indianapolis, state police said. Two of those 36 passengers complained of minor injuries, officials said.\nSgt. Kim Riley of the state police said the first snowfall of the season always produces a rash of crashes as motorists reacquaint themselves with winter weather \ndriving techniques.\n“It’s just stupidness. They’re trying to get somewhere faster than they can get there,” he said. “It takes a couple of snows for people to remember how to drive, before they realize it’s slick out there.” \nIn Marion County, police responded to 175 crashes, 14 of which caused some kind of injury, police said.\nThe National Weather Service reported 3 to 5 inches of snow fell across most of the northern half of the state. Some locations immediately east of Lake Michigan recorded snow depths of about 6.5 inches.\nVirtually no snowfall was reported over the state’s southern counties.\nWeather Service meteorologist Crystal Pettet said the weather system that delivered the snow was due to move out of the state by Wednesday afternoon, but falling temperatures and gusty winds would pose renewed threats to motorists as snow and slush on \nroads freeze.\n“Temperatures have already started going down and we also have some pretty decent winds. We’ve already seen gusts up to 30 miles per hour and that will continue this afternoon,” Pettet said.