School bus accident subject of lawsuit

The South Carolina Department of Education is named the defendant in a civil lawsuit filed this week in Oconee County.  The complaint, filed by an Anderson attorney on behalf of Joel Paige Ward, alleges negligence on the part of a bus driver, Mark Jeffrey Drost, involved in an accident last year in Seneca. It alleges that, on or about February 10, 2022, Plaintiff Ward was riding as a passenger with Mr. Harry Stancil on South Fairplay Street in Oconee County.  Suddenly and without warning,” according to the allegation, “Drost, who was driving a school bus, failed to yield the right of way at a stop sign striking Mr. Stancil’s truck.  The collision was so significant that Mr. Stancil’s truck rolled over onto the driver’s side, causing Plaintiff significant injuries.”  The plaintiff’s side seeks actual damages and requests a jury trial in the Common Pleas Court.