Crash with bus hurts SUV passenger

ANCHORAGE - Alaska State Troopers said a passenger in a sport utility vehicle was seriously injured Tuesday when the SUV slammed into the rear of a school bus in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough.

The bus carried 22 children from Big Lake Elementary School. No one on the bus was injured.

Trooper spokeswoman Megan Peters said a Toyota 4Runner driven by a 23-year-old woman crashed into the bus at about 4:15 p.m. on Big Lake Road.

Peters said the driver was taken to Mat-Su Regional Medical Center and treated for minor injuries. The passenger was flown to Providence Alaska Medical Center.

The bus was struck while it was stopped with its lights flashing on a straight stretch of dry road, Peters said.