TUSCARAWAS COUNTY, Ohio — Hundreds gathered at the Tuscarawas Valley School District football stadium for a vigil Tuesday night as the community mourns the six lives lost in a fiery crash on I-70 earlier in the day.
The crash involved a charter bus carrying the district's students to a Ohio School Boards Association conference in Columbus. The Ohio State Highway Patrol confirmed three teenagers on the bus died: John W. Mosely, 18, of Mineral City, Jeffery D. Worrell, 18, of Bolivar; and Katelyn N. Owens, 15, of Mineral City.
Three others died in a passenger vehicle, which had a faculty member and two chaperones inside: Dave Kennat, 56, of Navarre; Kristy Gaynor, 39, of Zoar; and Shannon Wigfield, 45, of Bolivar.
Derek Varansky, the school district superintendent, called it the "worst day of his life," and added the students who passed away were "bright lights, full of life and they lost their lives way too young.
Six candles were lit, one for each of the victims. Around 20 other students had been injured, but 18 have been discharged with non-life-threatening injuries.
The crash is under investigation.