SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — School buses from local school districts have been used to transport victims of the recent Southern California wildfires to non-threatened areas within the county.

Nearly a dozen buses from San Diego Unified School District have been driven to evacuation centers, and residents, particularly those who are elderly, have been taken to safer areas of the city.

When the fires reached Poway, Transportation Director Tim Purvis assisted individuals involved in relief efforts at an emergency operations center by using the school district's GPS technology, which was supplied by Zonar Systems, to track his fleet's 150 buses and route them to areas where residents were in need.

Of the aid, NAPT Executive Director Mike Martin said, "This is a reminder that school buses aren't just about getting kids to and from school anymore. They are an invaluable component of a community's emergency response team, ready to assist police, fire and National Guard rescue efforts."