The Knoxville community has suffered a devastating loss today. Close to 3:00pm this afternoon, two school buses serving Sunnyview Primary School and Chilhowee Intermediate School collided in a tragic accident which left 23 children injured, and three people dead. Two of the fatalities were children; the third was an aide. No names have been released at this time.

The bus collision happened at the intersection of John Sevier Road on the Asheville Highway in Knoxville, Tennessee. Police are still investigating the scene of the accident, and have warned that the roads may be closed until at least midnight tonight. One of the buses sustained front end damage, but another flipped over. As of right now, police still don’t know what caused the accident, or what caused the bus to flip.

According to Local8Now.com, “several children on board the buses were taken to East Tennessee Children’s Hospital; hospital staff report none of the children treated there were suffering from life-threatening injuries.” Parents whose children were involved in the accident are encouraged to call the hospital at 865-541-8109.

There is no way to quantify a loss such as this. The children on the bus were in kindergarten through third grade, meaning that the two children who died were probably between the age of five and nine. The loss of the aide – a person who has probably dedicated his or her life to the teaching and protecting of children – is incredibly tragic.

Moment likes these frustrate us, because we want to help give these grieving families the answers they so desperately seek. We want to find a way to give the parents of these children some peace, and yet we are as helpless in the face of this tragedy as everyone else; we know how important it is that local and state police have the time necessary to thoroughly investigate the scene, and yet we want answers as quickly as possible.

We also know that Knox County Superintendent Jim McIntyre will have grief counselors available for the children of both schools available for the rest for the rest of the week. We cannot imagine how they will be able to explain this senseless tragedy to children who are so young, and we do not envy that job.

Tonight, our thoughts and prayers are with the families of Knoxville. We hope that you may find the answers you need, and that those answers go at least some way towards helping you through this unspeakably difficult time.