At approximately 3:45 p.m. on Thursday, an older model Honda Accord struck Catoosa County school bus 52 at the intersection of Three Notch Road and Talley Circle in Ringgold, about half a mile from Heritage High School.

The bus was traveling from Talley Circle and the Accord was traveling from Three Notch road. At the intersection, Three Notch has the right of way and Talley Circle has a stop sign.

Ga. State Patrol would not give a formal statement at the time of the accident. As a precautionary measure several students were taken on stretchers, but exact numbers and extent of injuries is not known at this point.

Eye witnesses said the students "looked okay."

Students not being treated at the scene were transferred to another bus to continue the route home.

Jeff Hoffinger, who lives across the street from the intersection, said he heard the crash and that it “shook the house.”

“It really shook me up seeing all of those kids get hit,” Hoffinger said.

He said it appeared the bus driver was handling the situation properly, but that this wasn’t the first accident he had seen at the intersection.

“It’s just a bad spot,” Hoffinger said.

Mother Diane Conely and her daughter, Katie Conely, were behind the bus coming from Talley Circle.

They said the Accord struck the rear end of the bus as the bus turned onto Three Notch.

Katie Conely said the tires on the Accord squealed “at the last minute” before hitting the bus.

Traffic was blocked for over an hour on Three Notch, Talley Circle and Davis Ridge Road.

A formal statement by the Ga. State Patrol will be available on www.catwalkchatt.com as soon as possible.