Teen Jumps Into Action To Save Bus Full of Students After Spotting Driver Slumped Over

By Sarah Carri March 14, 2019 at 10:47pm

A busload of high school students are being praised for handling a frightening emergency situation that could have escalated into much more than it did.

One student in particular is being called a hero. But 14-year-old Matt Stauffer from Carbon County, Pennsylvania insists he just did what he “thought was right.”

https://t.co/MzcC3CipNa

— patty stauffer (@pstauffer1970) March 14, 2019

“I wasn’t really thinking, I was just acting. Just doing what I thought was right,” Stauffer told news station WNEP.

When Stauffer got on the bus around 7:30 a.m., he immediately noticed something was different. The worried looks on the other students’ faces led the teen to find a horrifying sight.

“They were all looking up at the bus driver and I turned around and saw he was slumped over,” Stauffer told Times News.

“The only thing holding him up at that point was his seat belt,” he continued. The quick-thinking 14-year-old sprung into action.

He noticed the driver’s foot was on the gas pedal, revving the engine. Stauffer knew it was up to him to act in that moment.

Would you have acted this calmly in an emergency situation?

“I reached up, turned the bus off, and then I put the keys in my pocket. No one else could get them,” Stauffer explained to WNEP.

He then says he told the other students to evacuate and call 911. Superintendent Dr. Brian Gasper is proud of Stauffer and his fellow students.

“Last week we just did bus evacuation drills, so we do have a process and procedures and we do go through that with every bus,” Gasper explained to BRC TV.

Gasper and the entire school administration are pleased with how calmly the students reacted in a crisis situation.

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— patty stauffer (@pstauffer1970) March 12, 2019

Stauffer explained to Times News that the bus driver is a good guy. “Every day he picks us up, he says good morning and tells us to have a great day,” the teen said.

Stauffer’s mom, Patty Stauffer, tweeted that she “couldn’t be more proud of him.” We’re proud of him, too, and hope the bus driver will recover from this ordeal soon.

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Tags:

Hero, High school, Public schools, Rescue

Sarah Carri

Contributor, Lifestyle

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Sarah Carri is an avid reader and social media guru with a passion for truth and life. Her writing has previously been published in print and online by Focus on the Family and other well known media outlets. Her experience in ministry and Disney entertainment gives her a unique perspective on such topics.

Sarah's experience as a successful working stay-at-home mom and business owner has given her the chance to write and research often. She stays up to date on the latest in entertainment and offers her views on celebrity stories based on her wide knowledge of the industry. Her success as a former preschool teacher and licensed daycare provider lend to her know-how on topics relating to parenting and childhood education.

Her thoughts on faith and family issues stem from home life and ministry work. Sarah takes time to attend workshops and classes annually that help her to improve and hone her writing craft. She is a graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature program and her writing has been acclaimed by ACFW and ECPA.

Education

Institute of Children's Literature, Art Institute of Phoenix (Advertising), University of California Irvine (Theater), Snow College (Early Childhood Education)

Location

Arizona

Languages Spoken

English

Topics of Expertise

Entertainment, Faith