Family remembers victim in Monday bus crash

At the site of the accident just west of Dermott, a memorial has been set up to remember the victims.(Source: KARK-TV)
Published: Jun. 8, 2022 at 7:59 PM CDT

DERMOTT, Ark. (KARK/KAIT) – Two days after five people were killed in a Chicot County bus crash, the victims’ families are still coming to terms with their loss.

At the site of the accident just west of Dermott, a memorial has been set up, featuring crosses with flowers in a variety of colors, along with a marker. That marker bears the name of the victims killed when their C.B. King school bus crashed into an 18-wheeler crossing U.S. Highway 65.

Among those was 19-year-old Brayshawn Ransom, the youngest killed.

His son, Jacquelyn Stephens, remembers her son as a kind and loving teenager ready to start his life after graduation.

“He was a good kid,” she told content partner KARK. “He loved his nieces and nephews, and he was kind to everybody.”

She said he was a drummer in the school band, an avid basketball player, and a hopeful truck driver – the same career as his uncle.

Brayshawn’s family has gathered in Dermott to make final arrangements and remember the loving life of the family’s baby.

Stephens remembers the day it happened.

“I was here at home waiting on him to come home, get off the school bus,” she explained, wiping away tears. “But he never did.”

When they first heard about the accident, Stephens and her family quickly located her nephew at the hospital, who was also on the bus when it crashed. He survived with injuries, but Brayshawn was nowhere to be seen.

“We knew some [victims] got dispersed everywhere,” said Earl Stephens, Brayshawn’s uncle, “But we didn’t know where he was, and it was driving us crazy.’

It took hours to get an answer, with family members going from Dumas to McGhee, only to receive the worst news: The happy, loving teenager with big dreams had died.

“It’s just a hard thing to take in,” said Evelyn Wimbley, Brayshawn’s great aunt.

The family members are not telling Brayshawn’s story to remember his life, sharing one last message from the bright spark of a young man: Follow your dream and take care of your family.

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