Authorities say 17 people were injured, two of them in serious condition, when a charter bus carrying a high school chorus team crashed early yesterday morning in Walterboro, South Carolina. The crash occurred around 1 a.m., Colleton-Fire Rescue Chief Barry McRoy said.

The bus was carrying 30 students and adult chaperones from Beddingfield High School in Wilson, North Carolina, who were traveling back from a trip to Florida.

McRoy said the northbound bus ran off the left side, crossed southbound lanes and went down an embankment. He said 11 people were transported to local hospitals and the driver was one of those listed in serious condition. Six additional students arrived later for treatment of minor injuries, he said.

“They were very fortunate,” McRoy said. “There were two large trees near where the bus landed and if they’d gone just a few feet further over, they would have hit those trees head-on.”

The Beddingfield Chorus shared a Facebook post yesterday thanking a trucker who stopped by and offered paper towels to stop any bleeding. It says the hospital opened up its cafeteria and offered to cook them breakfast.