Spring outing. Bus rolled on its side but didn’t overturn. This was between Forestville State Park and Mystery Cave.The yellow school bus is a few hindred feet down the road off the right shoulder. Image: Fillmore County sheriff
Three kids to hospital; injuries mostly bumps, bruises
WYKOFF, Minn. – Several Winona Middle School students were injured when their school bus went off a steep shoulder on a gravel road and rolled on its side on a field trip to Mystery Cave State Park. Three students were transported 37 miles to a Rochester hospital. Thirty-five students and four adults were on were onboard. Most injuries were minor and treated at the scene, said Fillmore County Sheriff John DeGeorge. Vans were sent to transport the children back to the Winona Middle School for parents to pick them up. The accident occurred about 10 a.m. northwest of Forestville near the 212th Street and 201st Avenue junction. The bus was one of several in a convoy for the 100-mile round trip. The initial report was that the right side tires of the bus went off the shoulder and down an embankment, The bus tipped on its side. The State Patrol would be called in to reconstruct what happened, the sheriff said.
Mystery Cave profile
Mystery Cave is the longest cave in Minnesota, with over 13 miles of underground passages. Near the Iowa border 50 miles from Winona. Guided tours by state park rangers take visitors underground to scenic pools and through various cave formations. Scenic, lantern, geology, photography, and spelunking tours are available. Tiurs: $15, although K-12 school groups are less. At nearby Forestville State Park, there are pioneer life re-enactments.