'Sounded like crashing:' 11 students, bus driver taken to hospital after Cleveland High school bus overturns

State Highway Patrol troopers said the bus was traveling west around 2:30 p.m. when it traveled off the road to the right. Troopers said the driver then overcorrected and came back onto the road.

The bus crossed over the centerline and then overturned, troopers said. The bus then ran off the right to the road and came to a stop.

The bus driver was was taken to WakeMed with serious injuries while one student was also taken to WakeMed with non-life-threatening injuries. Eleven other students were noted as having possible injuries and were transported to local hospitals with minor injuries.

"I heard what sounded like screaming — [it] sounded like crashing," said Karl Hough, who was doing work at a neighbor's house when he heard what happened.

Hough said it appeared the bus driver was stuck after the crash.

"I crawled through the window next to the bus driver and I got in there and the door wouldn't open and so, we kicked it down," he said. "A couple other [people] helped pry it open and we helped lay down the driver and we waited there for a little while and EMS came."

"Since the whole bus was flipped over, she was just standing there on the roof and the seatbelt was still on her and we helped pull that off her," added Hough.

Fourteen students who were not injured were returned to Cleveland High School, where they were being reunited with their parents.

"[The bus] was real tore up. The roof was caved in a good bit. It had fallen down. It was a little chaotic in there," said Hough.

Justin Baker said he's still trying to come to terms with what he experienced on his way home from school.

"Whenever it happened, I blacked out and I didn't really know what was going on," said Baker.

With cuts and scrapes on his face, Baker said he immediately called his mother, Jennifer.

"Your heart just jumps out of your chest," said Jennifer Baker.

"It's very scary, very emotional ... very traumatic to think that something like that could happen," she said.

But, Jennifer Baker said she's thankful to have her son back home.

Johnston County Schools employees were seen trying to flip the bus back up on its side.

The cause of the crash has yet to be determined, but the weather was clear and the bus was traveling on a straight road with a very narrow shoulder when it happened.

A spokesperson for Johnston County Public Schools said guidance counselors would be on hand at Cleveland High School for students who need help processing today's crash.