CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A Chippewa Valley school bus driver is on administrative leave after a “scary” bus ride that sent multiple kids to the hospital.
Parents of the students said the driver intentionally slammed on the brakes Wednesday afternoon.
“We all usually sit here and wait for the bus, and we’re watching her, and all of the sudden the bus goes and she brake checked the kids,” parent Dawn Snay said.
Several parents told Local 4 that this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened, but it was their breaking point.
“When she finally opened the door, kids were just falling out crying, and their faces were like they were terrorized, and then my 6-year-old came out and she was crying, holding her neck,” parent Catherina Dunn said.
Dunn took her 6-year-old to the hospital where she was diagnosed with a sprained neck.
They weren’t the only family to make a trip to the emergency room.
“One of my sons smacked the wall of the bus from being shaken around and my daughters, all of them smacked their heads towards the front,” parent Nicholas Jasper said. “My first grader has a small hairline fracture on his nose. We were all at Troy Beaumont last night dealing with it all for six or seven hours dealing with it all and they all have documented minor concussions.”
The parents said their complaints to the transportation department went unanswered, which is when they reached out to Local 4.
“We’re asking for help to get this bus driver to stop driving our kids,” Snay said.
Chippewa Valley Schools Superintendent Ron Roberts released a statement Thursday afternoon, announcing that the driver had been placed on administrative leave while the district investigates the incident.
“The safety and security of our students is always our top priority, whether they are in school or riding on one of our school buses,” Roberts said in the statement. “… We want families to know that we will take appropriate action based on what we learn.”
Parents said there are cameras on the school bus that would’ve captured the alleged incident. The families and Local 4 asked to view the footage but have not heard back from the district about that request.