School bus catches fire on I-17, no students hurt

YAVAPAI COUNTY, Ariz. - No students were hurt when a school bus went up in flames late Thursday night along Interstate 17, south of Camp Verde.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety says the fire happened just after 9:30 p.m. on Sept. 7 along the northbound lanes of the highway at milepost 274.

"The school bus was completely destroyed by the fire," DPS said. "The bus driver observed flames and immediately stopped in the right emergency lane and directed everyone to exit the bus."

Firefighters from the Mayer Fire Department responded to put out the flames.

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No students were hurt when a school bus went up in flames late Thursday night along Interstate 17, south of Camp Verde. (Nolan Porter)

Forty student-athletes and coaches from Mogollon High School were on board the bus. None of them were hurt. The team was reportedly traveling after their varsity football game when the bus caught fire. Mogollon High School is in the Heber-Overgaard area.

A GoFundMe has been established to help the team recoup the loss of their equipment.

The cause of the fire is unknown.

The northbound lanes of I-17 were shut down north of Arcosanti, but they have since been reopened.

School bus a total loss after catching on fire

A group of students had a close call on Sept. 7 when their school bus caught on fire, while they were in Northern Arizona. The students were headed back to the Heber-Overgaard area from Mayer when the fire happened. FOX 10's Marc Martinez reports.

Area where the fire happened: