Overturned bus training an ‘eye-opener’ for staff

More than 80 people in Van Buren County, Mich., participate in an emergency training event that shows them what it feels like to be in an overturned school bus as well as one filled with smoke. Transportation Supervisor Mark Niewoonder shares details on the hands-on event and how it changed staff members’ perceptions.

Emergency Training in an Overturned Bus

Evacuating passengers with special needs and equipment

Pupil transportation officials must have access to medical information on the students they are transporting, especially when the students are dependent on medical equipment and others for their care. They must also have a well-developed evacuation plan for all students that they transport.

South Western City Schools' Bomb Threat Exercise

Identifying and evaluating school bus route hazards

To ensure students’ safety, transportation managers must implement a procedure for this effort that includes scheduled onsite reviews and a means to efficiently communicate the hazards to staff. School bus drivers, local and state police, and local emergency operations centers should be involved.

Houston district trains for disaster with overturned bus

School bus drivers and attendants at Houston Independent School District this year are undergoing counter-terrorism training, which includes a mock disaster drill. The event involves an older bus turned on its side and staged injuries, allowing the staff members to practice their first aid training.

Is your school district prepared for super-fog?

Super-fog is a combination of smoke and early morning water vapor that produces zero visibility over roadways. When it impacts a Florida operation, buses are convoyed out of the terminals until they reach a clear area, and a “pre-warning” procedure is developed.

Bus yard safety, inside and out

Physical security such as fences and video surveillance, in addition to providing your drivers and other staff with ID badges and safety training, can go a long way in securing your bus yard.

District launches new bus evacuation training effort

The transportation staff at Maine School Administrative District #37 in Harrington incorporates side window emergency exit evacuation into its training following an accident wherein the rear exit of a bus became unusable. Director of Transportation Dawn Coffin tells SBF that the bus drivers learned safe techniques for this type of evacuation, and the district hopes to begin the training with students in the upcoming school year.

Bus driver's medical episode prompts safety training

Albuquerque (N.M.) Public Schools’ student transportation services division is instructing its bus passengers on how to stop a bus if the driver is unable to. The training is implemented after Rhonda Carlsen boards her daughters’ bus to stop it because the driver is incapacitated. She discusses the incident with SBF, and Roger Garcia, co-interim director for the transportation division, discusses the components of the training.