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Me either. I did go back to read the "full comment" and it didn't make sense to me.
In Texas there is no excuse for driving through/around any barricaded streets. Or flooded streets in general. The flood areas have year-round measuring signs posted, a school bus driver should be very familiar with these and those areas using them. It is known to everyone who drives here "turn around, don't drown". It is broadcast anytime it rains a little. IMO it is more important for a driver who transports any people to not be arrogant and drive around blockades. A school bus driver who does this needs to be brought up on endangerment charges and fired. He or she should also be fined the highest stupidity tax there is.....oh wait, there is no tax for stupidity. Shame....SMH.
Last edited by Lodestar 77; 10-31-2018 at 04:21 PM..
I think he did this just because he didn't want to turn around and go another route to get that kid home (IF there is one).
Definitely a poor decision that endangered his own and that poor kid's lives. I can't imagine being the mother and getting the scared phone call from her son telling her he thought he was going to die. Horrible.
Yes, and it was a very stupid thing to do. I just think chances are it was an honest mistake. Negligent, but akin to running a red light and causing a potential fatal crash. I don't think you get arrested for that, do you? Maybe I'm wrong.
It's child endangerment. Drive any vehicle recklessly with kids inside, and you are probably going to be charged with child endangerment.
For those wondering here is the location of the bridge. I have to wonder if that was even an approved route. It's a narrow one lane bridge with no guard rail. I can't believe that they would even authorize that route if there was no water on it. It doesn't look appropriate for a large school bus to be traveling that route.
School bus driver, meaning he was probably very familiar with that route? Yeah, throw the book at him, that was a reckless thing to do. I could MAYBE, just maybe give a pass to someone unfamiliar with the road thinking they could make it through there, but that guy had to realize how deep that water was there and he chose to risk it anyway. One thing to do it yourself, entirely another to do it when you have someone else with you, especially a kid.
One look at surging mess should have been enough to put anyone off.
For those wondering here is the location of the bridge. I have to wonder if that was even an approved route. It's a narrow one lane bridge with no guard rail. I can't believe that they would even authorize that route if there was no water on it. It doesn't look appropriate for a large school bus to be traveling that route.
Interesting... There are a few houses nearby though, and it seems to be the only road that gets there. Granted, he could have just turned around and gotten in from the other side of the river.
Strange road setup though. Seems like a fairly decent-sized town too.
This happened in Williamson County, which just plunked down over $3 million on a pair of high school football fields - just the playing surfaces, not any of the infrastructure such as stands, concessions, etc.
So, maybe the county could spend just a wee bit less on football fields and just a wee bit more on screening for prospective bus drivers and training for the driver it hires?
For those wondering here is the location of the bridge. I have to wonder if that was even an approved route. It's a narrow one lane bridge with no guard rail. I can't believe that they would even authorize that route if there was no water on it. It doesn't look appropriate for a large school bus to be traveling that route.
Having grown up in a rural community I can tell you that school buses travel where they have to, and there is nothing unsafe about rural roadways when there aren't deep blizzards or flash floods on them. Thank you for posting the map of the bridge.
At first I thought that the driver was crazy, but now I can see why he/she may have thought they could make it across - probably trying to deliver the student to its home. Without taking the force of the water flow into account, it looks like it may have been possible, and I don't see the water raging until the bus is halfway submersed in it.
Hindsight being 20/20, he/she should have realized that by the time the water reached midway on the tires that maybe he/she should have stopped and put the bus in reverse, but Im sure there was a lot of adrenaline flowing as well, and their primary objective has always been to get students to school and then home.
People make mistakes. Im not sure this warrants criminal charges, especially since the child survived. If you want to punish the driver, losing his/her job should more than suffice for the bad judgement.
Hindsight being 20/20, he/she should have realized that by the time the water reached midway on the tires that maybe he/she should have stopped and put the bus in reverse, but Im sure there was a lot of adrenaline flowing as well, and their primary objective has always been to get students to school and then home.
People make mistakes. Im not sure this warrants criminal charges, especially since the child survived. If you want to punish the driver, losing his/her job should more than suffice for the bad judgement.
This was not a puddle. This was 5'+ of rushing water. The normal reaction for most adults would be "holy CRAP! That's a lot of water! I need to turn around." Hell, he didn't even know if there was still road there.
He made that decision too quickly for adrenaline to be a factor. He just plowed right in. He wasn't ignorant to how much water there was. That was just macho arrogance.
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