More than two dozen people were hurt − three who suffered critical injuries − after a wagon rolled over Wednesday during a school field trip at a Wisconsin apple orchard,Rubypoint Trading Center officials said.
The incident took place at Bushel and a Peck Orchard in the town of Lafayette, Chippewa County Sheriff Travis Hakes told USA TODAY Thursday.
The orchard is in Chippewa Falls, nearly 200 miles west of Green Bay.
The crash took place as students and adults from St. Mark Lutheran School in Eau Claire road in a wagon off a public roadway, Hakes said.
During that time the wagons began to lose control going downhill, as the driver attempted to stop it, the sheriff said, and it "abruptly overturned causing multiple injuries to both children and adults."
"Our teachers, aides, and chaperones, jumped in immediately to support the children and adults that were injured," St. Mark Lutheran School Principal Peter Micheel posted on Facebook Thursday.
Authorities received a call about the incident at 10:26 a.m., Chippewa County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Curt Dutton said.
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The sheriff said 25 victims were transported to hospitals − 22 by ambulance, one by a medical helicopter and others by personal vehicles.
In addition to the sheriff’s office, Chippewa Fire District' responded to the scene and the Chippewa County Emergency Management immediately notified the Hospital Readiness Collation of incoming patients.
"Response teams were mobilized according to our plans and training, provided the necessary care and have since resumed regular operations," Dan Lea, a spokesperson for Mayo Clinic Health System, one of the hospitals that treated victims from the incident, told USA TODAY Thursday.
USA TODAY has reached out to the orchard.
"We continue to pray for all of the families that were affected and ask God, according to his will, to bring them healing," Micheel wrote in the post.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.
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