AT least 12 people have been injured after a school bus carrying more than 40 children crashed.

Dramatic pictures show the bright yellow vehicle lying on its side after it careered off the side of the road.

Aerial view of a school bus on its side after an accident, with police vehicles at the scene.
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At least 12 people have been injured after a school bus crashed in TexasCredit: AP

Upside-down school bus after a crash.
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Pictures show the mangled wreckage of the busCredit: AP
The bus crashed on what was the first day of school in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday, officials said.

It was traveling along a rural stretch of road when it suddenly veered and rolled over.

The reason why the bus veered remains unknown at this time.

Investigators revealed there were 42 children and one adult on board at the time of the crash.

One person was rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to Travis County officials.

It’s not known if the person with life-threatening injuries was the driver or a student.

Two others suffered potentially life-threatening injuries.

Pictures captured the extensive damage to the bus.

Its roof suffered extensive damage and several of its windows were broken.

Kids were being transported from the Leander Independent School District, located in the northwest of the city.

The crash happened shortly after kids from one school were allowed to go home for the day.

No students had been dropped off at their homes.

‘A TRAGEDY’

Bruce Gearing, the Leander ISD superintendent, described the crash as a “tragedy.”

“This part of our Leander ISD family has been through so much already this summer with the floods,” he said.

“This tragedy this afternoon is really breaking our hearts.”

The accident in Austin wasn’t the only school bus crash to happen on Wednesday.

A bus carrying 58 children in Cleveland, Texas, overturned on a stretch of the FM 1010 road.

Sixteen people were left with minor injuries but some children were put into ambulances as a precaution.

It was the second time within a week that a bus belonging to the Cleveland Independent School District had been in a crash.

The accident has left some parents wondering if it’s safe for their children to take the bus to school.

Marisol Castillo said she had just enrolled her children to take the school bus.

“It was concerning because I put them as bus riders, and now I’m thinking about it,” she told the CBS affiliate KHOU-TV.

School bus overturned on its side after a crash.
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The bus was crumpled by the impact of the smashCredit: AP

Emergency responders at the scene of a school bus crash.
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Troopers rushed to the scene following the bus crashCredit: AP
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