Authorities ID Bigfork man killed after crashing into bus

Authorities have identified the Bigfork man who died Thursday after the vehicle he was driving slammed into the back of a school bus on U.S. 93 south of Whitefish in front of Hillside Church.

Theron Jensen, 48, of Bigfork, was extricated from the vehicle and transported to Kalispell Regional Medical Center where he later died from his injuries, the Flathead County Sheriff's Office stated in a media release Friday morning.

According to Montana Highway Patrol Trooper James Hawkins, the school bus was stopped in the far right northbound lane because a southbound school bus was stopped on the other side of the highway to pick up school children.

Trooper Hawkins said the driver was wearing his seat belt and was awake and alert when first responders arrived. Initially his injuries were considered non-life-threatening, but Hawkins said the driver died after being transported to the hospital.

Hawkins believed the driver wasn’t paying attention when the pickup hit the bus. Speed or alcohol are not believed to be factors in the crash. The crash is still being investigated.

The bus that was involved in the accident had already dropped off students attending Glacier High School.

The bus involved in the accident was not a Whitefish School District/Rocky Mountain Transportation bus and there were no passengers on the bus at the time of the accident, Whitefish school officials noted.

The driver of the bus was checked out by emergency medical technicians and appeared to be OK.

“We can’t stress enough, drivers need to stop in all lanes for a stopped school bus,” Trooper Hawkins said.

In addition to troopers from Montana Highway Patrol, the Whitefish Fire Department, Whitefish Police Department and U.S. Border Patrol responded to the wreck.

Northbound motorists used the middle turning lane to travel toward Whitefish while the other two lanes were blocked as the crash was investigated.

This story was updated Oct. 2 at 11 a.m.