MERIDIAN, Miss. (ABP) -- One youth was reported dead and a busload of teenagers and adult sponsors injured when a bus carrying them flipped en route to a youth camp sponsored by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship partner ministry Passport.

A church bus carrying 23 teenagers and adults from First Baptist Church in Shreveport, La., overturned July 12 when a tire blew out on Interstate 20 near Meridian, Miss. Media reports said the bus, headed toward a Passport camp in Macon, Ga., rolled three times before landing on its side, trapping some passengers underneath.

One youth was reported dead at the scene. At least one person was airlifted. Clayton Cobler, coroner of Lauderdale County, told the Shreveport Times that injuries ranged from severe pelvic and chest injuries to scrapes and scratches.

First Baptist Church of Shreveport got word of the accident, which occurred about 10:20 a.m., shortly before its Sunday morning service. "Our congregation is leaning on our faith and confidence in God, balancing direct action with reliance on the goodness and power of God," Greg Hunt, the church's senior pastor, said in a statement on the church's website.

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This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  is senior writer for Associated Baptist Press.

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