On February 6, 1973, seven students were killed and 16 students were hospitalized when a school bus was struck by a moving Santa Fe freight train. The bus was struck on the railroad street intersection on what is now N Eastside Ave. The accident occurred a little after 4:00 pm, with death certificates noting the time of death at 4:05 pm. Police investigation determined that the train was travelling eastbound at 58 mph when it struck the rear half of the northbound bus, causing injuries or death to all 23 students in the bus and injuring the driver, 68 year-old Artis Ray Johnson. Jean Patterson, bus driver of the bus behind Johnson's, as well as three students who were in Johnson's bus, claimed that the bus had stopped at a warning crossing that had functioning lights and bells before moving over the tracks and being struck. Artis Ray Johnson, the bus driver, was cited by Littlefield police the next day for failure to possess a chauffeur's license, which at the time had the penalty of a $200 fine. DPS records indicated that Johnson obtained a commercial driving license on June 8, 1959, after four failed attempts. Despite lacking a proper license, Johnson was hired by Claude Oliver, foreman of Littlefield's school buses. Oliver later explained that he had known Johnson while Johnson worked as a custodian at an elementary school, and that Johnson had driven school buses occasionally when needed. Oliver claimed that he did not check Johnson's record because he knew Johnson was a good driver.