24-year-old woman in death bus died in Indiana bus stop

A 9-year-old girl and her twin 6-year-old brothers were struck by a pickup truck as they crossed into northern Indiana road to board a school bus before sunrise Tuesday, police said. A fourth child was critically injured and airlifted to a hospital.

At Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. bus stopped and stopped its stop on the road near Rochester just before a northbound pickup truck slammed into the children as they crossed the southbound lane, Indiana State Police Sgt. Tony Slocum said.

Six-year-old twin brothers Xzavier and Mason Ingle and their 9-year-old sister, Alivia Stahl, died at the scene, he said. The rural Rochester residents were students at nearby Mentone Elementary School.

Slocum said the pickup's driver, Alyssa Shepherd, 24, of Rochester, was arrested and charged with three counts of homicide and one misdemeanor. Shepherd was being held at the Fulton County Jail we have $ 15,000 surety bond.

The great-aunt of the three siblings who were killed, Pamela Pugh, told the South Bend Tribune that they were stunned and shaken by their deaths.

"I'm just trying to make sense of all of it." There are no words, "she said.

Slocum said an 11-year-old boy died in the same month when he was hit by the pickup. That child, Maverik Lowe, was in critical condition at a Fort Wayne Hospital and was undergoing surgery.

Slocum said, "The boy was conscious and speaking to emergency workers.

Slocum said the students had the right of way to the street where they lived.

"It's an unspeakable tragedy," he said. "We are responsible for sharing the road and we are all responsible for making sure our children get to and from school safely."

Detectives were interviewed at the scene near Rochester, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) north of Indianapolis.

The National Transportation Safety Board announced on Twitter that it was sending a team of investigators to the scene that should arrive Wednesday.

The Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. said in a statement posted on Facebook has been assigned to its schools to help students, staff and parents. It urged "the community to come together to pray for families."

Gov. Eric Holcomb said in his statement that he and his wife, Janet, were mourning the students' deaths. He urged Indiana residents to send their "deepest prayers for the strength needed to endure such a time."

"Words can not express the depth of Janet and I feel that they are feeling right now," Holcomb said.