Gibsonburg woman killed in head-on crash with P.C. school bus

Saline bags littered Ohio 53, evidence of paramedics' heroic but unsuccessful efforts Wednesday afternoon to save a Gibsonburg woman after she hit a Port Clinton school bus head-on.A passerby held the hand of Diana Lau, 36, Gibsonburg, after the crash, comforting her until help arrived."She kept telling her help was coming," Tessa Sutherland, who witnessed the crash.Sutherland saw the massive collision while working at the Hy-Miler gas station, near where the crash occurred.Lau was heading north on Ohio 53 and had just passed the bridge over Ohio 2 when she went left of center and hit a Port Clinton school bus traveling south.The bus driver, Rayanne Smith, 34, and a transportation aide, Michelle Barnette, 41, were the only ones on the bus at the time. Both were taken to Magruder Hospital.The bus was on its way to pick up students at an alternative school in Genoa, 21 miles from the crash.The collision left both vehicles smoking, so a worker at Hy-Miler grabbed a fire extinguisher and ran to the scene in case the leaking engine fluids should ignite.First responders from the Bay Twp. volunteer fire department and the Erie Twp. Fire Department arrived to find the front of Lau's 1997 Chevy Luminia collapsed into itself. They started to give Lau transfusions and worked to keep her alive.Firefighters tore the driver's side door from the vehicle and removed the dashboard to free the woman, whose legs were pinned.A medical helicopter landed on Ohio 53, waiting to rush her to a Toledo hospital. Lau died before rescuers could transport her.A yellow and gray Cockatiel was also killed in the cash. Its broken cage laying on the pavement next to the car.Troopers with the Ohio State Patrol, Sandusky post, said it's not clear what happened in the moments before the crash or if the bird might have distracted the driver."We know it wasn't her sugar," Sgt. Joe Wentworth said. "Sometimes when drivers drift that far its sugar but we tested for that."Lau's neighbors remember her as an animal lover."She was very much a pet person," said Becky Lauer, who lived near Lau past four years. "She was a very private person, very friendly."Lau had dogs, cats and birds, Lauer said, and was an amazing gardener."She was willing to share her flowers. I have lots of plants she gave me starts of," Lauer said.Both Port Clinton School District employees suffered minor injuries and are shaken up, said Port Clinton Schools Superintendent Pat Adkins, who rushed meet them at the hospital.Troopers told him their driver was not at fault, Adkins said."Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the woman in the other car," Adkins said.With the schools back in session, Wentworth asked for drivers to be more cautious."Be more cautious coming over hills, slow down when you see a bus-their lights could come on at any time," Wentworth said.OSHP to patrol school zonesWith schools back in session Ohio State Patrol troopers will be heavily patrolling school zones this month.Lt. Darryl Edge said troopers will target school zones in both Erie and Ottawa Counties everyday in September, including when classes are scheduled to begin and let out for the day.They will be watching for traffic violations.In May troopers targeted the Danbury schools, as well as Perkins High School.