Nelson County school bus crash still under investigation by North Dakota Highway Patrol
Oct. 21—GRAND FORKS — The September crash involving a pickup truck and the Hatton-Northwood volleyball team bus is still under investigation by the North Dakota Highway Patrol, Lt. Ryan Panasuk said.
There isn't much to say regarding updates, due to the status of the investigation, but it is "very much ongoing."
"It's (an) open investigation and so there isn't really a lot we can put out at this point," Panasuk said. "It's very difficult to say exactly when or give a real good idea of when it would be completely finished."
The reconstruction team is working on in-depth portions of the investigation, Panasuk said.
This process includes taking detailed photos and measurements, inspecting both vehicles and piecing together how the crash happened — or getting into the "mechanics" of it. The Highway Patrol reconstruction team will determine the approximate speeds of both vehicles, as well as any evasive actions the drivers may have taken.
"It gets into a lot of physics and formulas ... and trying to get the best understanding of what actually occurred," Panasuk said.
The crash happened at 3:45 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 14, about five miles south of Petersburg. The bus — carrying 25 Hatton-Northwood volleyball players, a coach and the bus driver, Shari Bilden — was traveling north on Highway 32, according to the Highway Patrol. A pickup truck, driven by Archie Gronvold of Barton, North Dakota, was westbound on Nelson County Road 4.
Gronvold's vehicle was struck on the driver's side door as he crossed Highway 32, the Highway Patrol said. Both vehicles ended up in water alongside the road. Gronvold died at the scene and multiple bus passengers were transported to Altru Health System in Grand Forks.
This is a typical investigation for a crash of this nature, Panasuk said. It may take several weeks for the reconstruction to be completed. He said there are also other crashes and items on the Highway Patrol's queue to attend to, which will impact the time it takes for this investigation to be completed.
