Bus Driver Yanks Boy’s Backpack as He Is Getting off the Bus – Now She’s Hailed as a Hero

As parents, it can be hard to let others take care of your children.

After all, no one ever really quite loves your kids and watches out for them the exact way you would. Still, we send them to school and trust that those who are tasked with watching them follow the safety rules and regulations in place — from the teachers to the administrative staff to the bus drivers.

That’s why parents across America were shocked when they heard about this woman, who yanked a kid onto her bus one afternoon.

A Quick-Thinking Driver

April Wise was going about her regular school bus driving routine in Tecumseh, Ohio, one day in February. A video, which was later posted to the district’s social media page, shows Wise slowing down for a stop. She opens the door and checks the mirrors. That’s when she notices something is wrong.

There is a car approaching and it isn’t slowing down. A Grade 7 student is about to step off, so Wise grabs the boy’s backpack and pulls him back hard. Suddenly in the frame, you can see an SUV barreling by, right where the boy would have been.

“The only thing that went through my brain was to keep him from getting off the bus,” Wise, who is a first-year bus driver, told WHIO–TV.

“If he would have just got off the bus a little quicker or something, everything might have been different,” Karen Lokai, Tecumseh Schools’ transportation supervisor, told an NBC news outlet. “It gives you chills to hear it and see the video and see how close, you know, things happen in such a split second.”

Saving a Boy’s Life

Once the way was clear and the boy exited the vehicle, Wise reported the incident to her bosses. They reviewed the video and couldn’t believe just how close the situation was. At home, the boy told his mother how the driver had saved his life.

“The mom reached out to us personally to thank us and thank our team for responding to the accident [and] to thank the bus driver,” Superintendent Paula Crew told the publication. “She’s beyond [thankful that] her son got off the bus and came in the house when he did.”

She added that cars often pass the school buses, ignoring the clear “stop” sign that applies to vehicles coming from both directions. Failing to stop could not only result in a $500 fine in that area, but worse: a child could get hurt.

Clark County Sheriff’s Office Deputy John Loney says the boy was really lucky after this particular failure to stop. “It’s a miracle that he’s safe,” he said.

A Local Hero

Following the incident, Wise was hailed as a hero. People from the school, law enforcement, and parents gathered to say thank you in a special ceremony in which she was given an award.

“This goes far beyond what I imagined to happen, so I am very emotional,” Wise told WCSC. “I don’t deserve it, but I’m glad it’s bringing awareness and stuff. Hopefully, more people will take it into consideration,” she added.

“For what she did that day, we definitely appreciate it,” the boy’s father added to the publication.

Drive Responsibly

This story so clearly demonstrates why it is important to follow traffic laws, and it also reminds us all to slow down behind the wheel — particularly in school zones and on neighborhood streets.

Accidents take seconds to happen but can change a life forever. If it weren’t for Wise’s quick thinking, that boy could have been seriously injured or worse.

When we’re running late or really excited to get home after a long day at work, it can be tempting to speed up, spend a few seconds less at a stop sign, or ignore a school bus’s signal. But it’s important to take a breath and slow down.

Being a few minutes late won’t cost you much, if anything. And there are much worse things that can happen in life.

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