School Bus Driver Reneita Smith Saves 20 Children From Burning Bus
School bus driver Reneita Smith saved a group of children from a school bus fire.
School Bus Driver Reneita Smith Saves 20 Children From Burning Bus
College Park, MD – School bus driver, Reneita Smith of Maryland, is being hailed a hero for the actions she took in saving the lives of 20 students after her bus caught on fire.
The fire occurred on a Prince George’s County school bus transporting student home Monday afternoon from Glenarden Woods Elementary School in College Park, MD. Bus driver Reneita Smith was at the wheel when, after making her first two stops, she was alerted by a dashboard alarm onboard the bus. She immediately noticed smoke inside the cabin and looked in the rearview mirror to see flames.
Smith sprung into action, quickly and safely escorting all 20 elementary school students off the bus and to safety. The bus rapidly became engulfed in flames as Smith re-boarded the bus to check for any remaining students.
Reneita Smith described her actions to the media saying she “jumped up, got my babies and got off”. She continued, “I have to handle each child with care, as a mommy would her own, so that’s what I did. That’s what I hope any human being would do for any child.”
The driver, a mom of two children of her own, used her motherly instincts to lead the youngsters out of harms way. The students, some as young as 4 years old, were all uninjured in the fire.
A video of the fully engulfed bus was captured by a responding fire chief. Although startling and frightening to watch, it gives evidence to the magnitude of Smith’s actions. If it weren’t for her quick thinking, brave actions, and motherly instincts, this situation could have ended much worse. And for that, we thank Reneita Smith for her heroism.
