On the way back from the 2026-2027 freshman retreat on Sept. 29, the second Journey Lines charter bus (Bus No. 2) hit the corner of a roof while making a left turn upon leaving for Lakeside from Camp Arnold in Eatonville. 

Students recall chatting, playing games, and eagerly expecting the beginning of Finding Nemo before hearing the loud crash. In shock, they turned to find a shattered window and glass piled on their seats.

Closest to the window were students Kelden C. ’30 and Charlotte B. ’30. Kelden recalled that he had his back turned and felt something hit him. Charlotte said she looked out the window and saw the roof coming closer before it touched the window.” She turned away right as the glass fell, leaving her with no injuries and glass stuck in her hair. However, Kelden sustained a couple of minor cuts on his face and hand.

Sitting next to Kelden was Diego G.V. ’30. He said, “I turned to the left towards the window, and I [saw] the corner of the building hitting the bus, so I turned around … I was trying to shield myself.” He explained that there wasn’t enough time to alert the other students, and he felt confused at how suddenly the accident happened.

Kendall G. ’30 recalled switching spots with Kelden and Diego before the incident. She was chatting with her friend when she “heard a loud crash, and I saw the window kind of start cracking.” Like Diego, she turned away and shielded herself with her jacket.

Kelden and the other affected students were escorted off the bus to get cleaned up. Kelden also had to change into a spare shirt and pair of pants due to the abundance of glass on his clothes.

“I feel like the driver didn’t really realize how small the road was compared to the size of the bus, and he misinterpreted the empty space there was … and he turned in not a wide enough angle,” said Upper School Languages Department Head Mara Morales Ortiz, who was one of the advisors on the bus. She remembered first hearing the crash before turning and realizing students had been affected.

Mara decided to help clean off the students “because I have received wilderness first-aid training because I have been a GSL leader many times.” Using the first-aid kit on the bus, she stuck band-aids to the glass to remove it safely from the students.

Afterwards, the students on Bus No. 2 were spread out onto the other three buses, Bus No. 1, No. 3, and No. 4. Buses No. 3 and No. 4 were waiting behind Bus No. 2, and Bus No. 1 was informed of the incident and turned back to pick up the students. “A lot of people were asking if I was ok. … It was kinda hectic,” described Kelden. He said he was more worried about glass getting everywhere, a sentiment  shared by Charlotte and Mara.

In the days after the incident, Upper School Assistant Director Jeff Bonar created a document for the ninth-grade advisors to fill out with details about the event, students that needed assistance, and how the advisors helped in the situation. “We’ve been going to this camp for a long time, and nothing like this has ever happened before.”

Mr. Bonar also explained that any legal conversations around the incident are between Journey Lines and Camp Arnold, and Lakeside takes no part in these conversations.

Looking back on the experience, Diego, Charlotte, and Mr. Bonar all expressed relief that nothing worse happened. “It was a little scary when I was walking up to the buses … but once I started talking with people and checking on the students and realized people are doing alright, that was a huge relief,” recalled Mr. Bonar. “Things seemed to work out about as well as they could, considering how bad the situation was.”

Charlotte also said the incident gave her “a new perspective of something new to think about,” and that “it makes you think more about how many bad things can really happen to you in the world.” Mara echoed this with the importance of cherishing the people in your life; “I always think that life can change in a fraction of a second, and nothing is certain in life.”