A school bus driver in Rancho Santa Margarita was hailed as a hero for helping to get 35 students to safety after the vehicle caught fire Friday.
The 20-year veteran bus driver was pulling into Rancho Santa Margarita Intermediate School about 8 a.m. when she noticed the engine smoking, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Concialdi said.
She stopped the bus and the students stood up in the aisle to get out as usual, but the driver, whose name was not immediately available, said, “Kids, we need to exit quickly,” Concialdi said.
“She did an outstanding job, remained calm and kept all of the students calm and got them all out of the bus quickly,” Concialdi said.
None of the 35 students aboard the bus was injured, the captain said. Paramedics treated three students who were “emotionally distraught,” but two of them attended classes today and one was sent home, Concialdi said.
The bus driver tried to put the blaze out herself with a fire extinguisher, but the flames kept spreading, Concialdi said. Orange County firefighters doused the fire in 15 minutes, Concialdi added.
All of the 1,325 students from the school were led out of the building onto a sports field as firefighters worked on the blaze, Concialdi said.
—City News Service