By Kia Fatahi and Laura Ly, CNN
A seventh grade student in Michigan he is being hailed a hero for stopping his school bus from crashing after the bus driver lost consciousness, according to a school official.
Dillon Reeves, a student at Lois E. Carter High School in Warren, took immediate action on an after-school bus ride Wednesday afternoon in “an extraordinary act of courage and maturity,” the Consolidated Schools superintendent said. de Warren, Robert D. Livernois.
The bus driver experienced “some dizziness” while driving and followed protocol by alerting “home base” that she was not feeling well and was going to pull over to allow the transportation department to send someone to relieve her, Livernois said at a Thursday news conference.
But the driver didn’t make it to where she planned to park, eventually passed out and was unable to stop the bus, which began swerving into oncoming traffic, she said.
Reeves, who was sitting about five rows back, “jumped out of his seat, dropped his backpack, ran to the front of the bus, grabbed the steering wheel and stopped the bus in the middle of the road,” even in a panic, Livernois said. .
In video released by authorities at the press conference, Reeves is seen taking control of the wheel, slowly slamming on the brakes, then yelling to the other passengers: “Someone call 911. Now. Someone should call 911. I don’t care! Somebody call 911!”
“He had the means to push it slowly, probably anticipating that the bus was full of passengers. So despite the justifiable panic on the bus, you can imagine that this is probably a 66-passenger bus and that it was full at the time,” Livernois said, adding that there was no damage to the bus or surrounding property.
The Warren Police and Fire Departments responded to the scene within minutes and treated the bus driver, according to the superintendent. All the students were put on a different bus to go home, according to a letter from Livernois to the school district.
No injuries were reported among the children on the bus, Warren Fire Commissioner Skip McAdams told CNN.
The bus driver, a 40-year-old woman, is “stable but with precautions” and was taken to a hospital for examination, McAdams said.
The bus driver became alert and was able to communicate with first responders during her assessment, treatment, and transportation. She had no physical injuries and suffered a medical emergency due to loss of consciousness, the fire commissioner said.
The driver, whose name will not be released by authorities out of respect for her privacy, remains at the hospital and is still undergoing tests and observation, Livernois said. Livernois described her as a new driver, having been in the district since last July.
Reeves’ parents, Steve and Ireta Reeves, praised their son, calling him “our little hero.”
“First of all, we are very, very proud. I mean, this is overwhelming for all of us,” Steve Reeves said at the press conference.
“Dillon, he’s really been a great guy this year. He has come a long way. He has surprised us with very good grades and with his performances in schools with friends, with classmates. And to do something like this just fills my heart, makes my heart skip a beat,” Ireta Reeves said.
Warren is in southeast Michigan, about 20 miles north of Detroit.
The CNN Wire
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