Distracted driver to blame for bus crash carrying Hatton-Northwood volleyball team, troopers say

PETERSBURG, N. D. — After fours months of investigating, North Dakota state troopers believe a distracted pickup driver was to blame in a crash involving a school bus carrying a high school volleyball team.

The Sept. 14 crash just south of Petersburg, North Dakota , on Highway 32 involved a pickup and a school bus carrying the Hatton-Northwood volleyball team. The pickup driver, 68-year-old Archie Gronvold of Barton, died as a result.

“Cold sweat kind of feel, oh boy, we got a problem,” said North Dakota State Patrol Lt. Ryan Panasuk, recalling what was going through his mind as he raced 45 miles to the crash site. “Going through your mind, things you think you may encounter,” he said.

The school bus that was carrying the Hatton-Northwood volleyball team when it crashed Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023. Matt Henson / WDAY When he got there the school bus carrying the volleyball team to a match was on its side in a slough.

A smashed pickup was also in the slough. All of the 25 players, the bus driver and a coach were rushed to Altru hospital with a wide range of injuries. ADVERTISEMENT “That is the question we will probably never know the definitive answer to,” Panasuk responded when asked why the crash happened.

The investigation revealed Gronvold blew through a stop sign at the intersection of Highway 32 and County Road 4. Troopers say the school bus driver tried to stop but it was too late. The brakes on the pickup were never applied.

It’s estimated the bus and pickup were each going 65 mph when the crash occurred. More on the crash: Hatton-Northwood volleyball team makes thunderous return after deadly bus crash Oct 10, 2023 ‘I covered my face’: Hatton-Northwood volleyball team member describes deadly crash Sep 15, 2023 1 dead after school bus carrying volleyball team strikes pickup in Nelson County Sep 14, 2023 Troopers believe one theory could be Gronvold was distracted by a piece of paper. “We believe the individual may have been looking for an address in the area.

In this case, we don’t think it’s a phone specifically,” Panasuk said. One piece of evidence not available to investigators in this case is video. The school bus did not have a camera on it.

ADVERTISEMENT About a month after the accident some members of the volleyball team returned to the court. But to this day, the Northwood school superintendent says some of the girls are still recovering. The superintendents at both schools said the community support has been “humbling.

” “Both schools and the families involved are still feeling the effects of the crash, but we are forever grateful to all the first responders and Altru hospital,” said Northwood School Superintendent Shane Azure. “I’m very thankful it wasn’t any worse than it was, I think what most of us envisioned responding to we did not find, we found something far less, not to downplay how serious it was, but most of us envisioned students with serious injuries,” said Panasuk when asked what he thinks about that day four months later. As for the response, Panasuk said it could not have gone smoother.

Despite the crash happening in a rural area near Petersburg, which sits roughly 45 miles away in each direction from Grand Forks and Devils Lake, nearly a dozen ambulance squads responded from across the region. “A lesson learned is in some ways is what to do in many ways, and reinforce that,” Panasuk said. , Once the investigation was wrapped up, the highway patrol hosted a meeting and invited all the families involved to discuss what the investigation uncovered.

Most of the families attended that meeting, according to Panasuk. Comments Share Share this article News reporting News reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? Tags Tags CRASHES NORTH DAKOTA HIGHWAY PATROL VOLLEYBALL NORTH DAKOTA By Matt Henson Matt Henson is an Emmy award-winning reporter/photographer/editor for WDAY.

Prior to joining WDAY in 2019, Matt was the main anchor at WDAZ in Grand Forks for four years. Conversation.