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=Bus Crash with 59 Marines on Board=

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Three charter buses full of Camp Lejeune Marines crashed this morning in Jones County, North Carolina. The Marines were headed to Norfolk today ahead of certification exercises scheduled to begin on March 10, in advance of deployment overseas this spring. Carpenter says the Marines would be training with Bataan Strike Group. The driver of one of the buses was pinned inside and airlifted to the hospital in critical condition. 59 Marines and one sailor were onboard the buses. 13 Marines were injured and taken to the Naval Hospital at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville for treatment. None of the injuries were life-threatening.=====

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The crash happened on Highway 17 just before 8 a.m. The Highway Patrol says the accident involved three buses and two sport utility vehicles. Troopers say several vehicles were stopped for another vehicle attempting to make a turn off Highway 17. The first two buses stopped, but the third did not and started the chain reaction accident. Emergency responders were on the scene within about 20 minutes. The marines who were not hurt went back on the next buses headed for Norfolk. The Marines are all part of the 22nd Expeditionary Unit out of Camp Lejeune, who are to deploy as a reserve units to in the European and Middle East regions this spring.=====