8 dead, 14 hurt in Interstate 40 wreck in east Tennessee

Eight people died when a bus carrying church members home blew a front tire, crossed the grassy median of Interstate 40 in eastern Tennessee, clipped an SUV and collided with a tractor-trailer before overturning, officials said Wednesday.
Six people on the eastbound bus were killed, along with one of three occupants of the SUV and the tractor-trailer driver, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said in a statement.
"We hope and pray that there will be no more," Sgt. Bill Miller told reporters Wednesday evening. There were 18 people on the bus, which was from Statesville, North Carolina, officials said. It was carrying senior adults who attend Front Street Baptist Church in Statesville. Fourteen people were injured, the highway patrol said.
The wreck occurred about 2 p.m. in Jefferson County, about 40 miles east of Knoxville, said Tennessee Department of Safety spokeswoman Dalya Qualls. It was on Interstate 40 near the split with Interstate 81.