Hollidaysburg Area High School students rescue bus driver in distress
Quick-thinking quartet saves operator during medical emergency behind the wheel
Jenna Anderson
Skyla Horton
Alexis Smith
Travis Zerby
Jenna Anderson
Skyla Horton
Alexis Smith
Travis Zerby
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HOLLIDAYSBURG -- A quartet of Hollidaysburg Area High School students are being credited with saving a bus driver's life after he suffered a medical emergency behind the wheel.
Seniors Skyla Horton and Travis Zerby and sophomores Alexis Smith and Jenna Anderson worked together Thursday afternoon to stop the bus, communicate with the Fullington Bus Co. over the radio and call 911 to help the bus driver and prevent a larger accident.
Having heard that the driver has fully recovered, the students on Tuesday looked back on their efforts to save the driver and everyone on the bus.
"We did as good as we could have possibly done," Alexis said.
It had been a typical afternoon when Travis boarded the bus after school.
Skyla was standing in the bus aisle when the bus driver dropped off 10 junior high kids, and her sister was the last to step off the stairs before the bus started moving again.
"And it was shaking the entire time we were stopped, so we knew something was wrong already," she said.
Instead of driving around the corner, Skyla said the driver went straight, and his head began to bob. She saw Alexis jump out of her seat at the front of the bus, while Travis, sitting in the middle, told Alexis to step on the brake.
Skyla pulled the parking brake and opened the doors for more airflow, while another student opened the back door to get everyone off the bus.
"I was like, 'What am I supposed to do,'" Alexis said. "I panicked a little bit, and then I realized I had to slam the gear shifter up first."
Alexis stepped on the brake and checked the driver's pulse. She noticed it was weak and began to get him out of his seat before he woke up again.
Meanwhile, Travis communicated through the bus radio using codes; Jenna called 911 when the driver was unresponsive; Alexis checked his vitals and respiration; and Skyla shook the driver before medical assistance arrived.
Alexis and Skyla said their health and medical science teacher at the Greater Altoona Career and Technology Center, Alisha Clingerman, helped them quickly respond to the driver's medical emergency.
Skyla said Clingerman "does a really good job at teaching her kids what to do in a panic situation or in any situation that could happen."
After reviewing the bus footage from Fullington Bus Co., Hollidaysburg Area Senior High School Principal Breanne Venios said every student involved should be commended for their quick thinking.
"Not one cellphone was out recording," she said. "Everyone was listening, everyone was following instructions, which goes to show the importance of the bus emergency practices they do."
She said all of the students who helped operated on muscle memory, knowing how to address the situation while ensuring everyone's safety.
"The fact that everyone buckled down, listened and followed -- it was textbook the way that everyone responded," she said. "So it was really nice to see the kids work together to make it happen."
Mirror Staff Writer Colette Costlow is at 814-946-7414.