In this aerial photo, emergency workers respond to a crash involving a church bus and a tractor-trailer near Dandridge, Tenn., on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2013. Authorities say a tire on the bus blew out and the bus hit the tractor-trailer and a sport utility vehicle, killing eight people.DANDRIDGE, Tenn. – For months, a tight-knit group of seniors at a North Carolina church had been looking forward to the road trip.
It was a tradition for members of the Young at Heart Ministry to attend the annual Fall Jubilee in Gatlinburg, Tenn., an event featuring gospel singers and speakers. The Front Street Baptist Church’s website described the gathering as “three days of singing, laughing and preaching” for “mature and senior believers.”
But on the way back to Statesville, N.C., on Wednesday, the bus carrying the church group blew a tire, veered across a highway median and crashed into a sport utility vehicle and tractor-trailer in a fiery wreck that killed eight people.
Fourteen other people were hurt in the accident in northeastern Tennessee, including two who were in critical condition.
Church members on Wednesday night were waiting for more details. None of the victims have been identified.