Aurora Bridge crash casts pall over first day of school at N. Seattle College
Sep 28, 2015, 6:06 PM | Updated: Sep 29, 2015, 5:36 am
Five students from North Seattle College died in the horrific crash involving a Ride the Ducks amphibious vehicle and their chartered tour bus.
It was far from the normal start to a new school year at North Seattle College on Monday, as students returned following last week’s deadly bus crash on the Aurora Bridge.
Five North Seattle students were killed in the crash after the driver of a Ride the Ducks amphibious vehicle lost control and plowed into the side of the charter bus taking them to several orientation events downtown.
Related: state regulators suspend Ride the Ducks operations
“We will miss them, and we will miss all of those who can not be with us here today,” said Dr. Warren Brown, North Seattle College president.
Brown said the accident cast a tangible pall of the campus as classes got underway. He said it is difficult to get an accurate count of how many students involved in the accident remain hospitalized or stayed away from school Monday because they were not emotionally ready to begin classes.
“I will say this is beyond the students that were injured in this tragedy, there is a sense of sadness across the campus,” Brown said.
The school has established two support centers on campus – one for those directly involved in the accident, the second for those emotionally impacted by it.
“Each one is very individual, and also there are cultural pieces to that,” Brown said of the specialized care that includes support services tailored to each of the myriad of ethnicities and background’s of the students.
Brown said he was moved the resiliency of many of the students, eager to get started with the term. Some were in class with their arms in slings or other obvious signs of the trauma they endured last week.
Brown said staff will continue to provide support and keep a close eye out indefinitely for signs of post-traumatic stress.
“I know that as they’re focusing on their school work, that at some point it’s going to hit them – the magnitude of this.”
The school has been inundated with offers of support and requests to make financial contributions that can directly assist the student and staff in need, Brown said.
If you want to make a donation, you can visit the North Seattle College website for more information.
The college will host a vigil in the North Seattle College campus courtyard Wednesday, September 30, at 6 p.m. that is open to the community.
A district-wide moment of silence will be held Thursday at 11:15 a.m.
