Bus Driver 'Heroic' as Rancho Santa Margarita School Bus Is Engulfed in Flames

Photo Credit: Twitter User CBS Los Angeles ‏@CBSLA and Julian Gomez

Authorities are calling a Rancho Santa Margarita Intermediate School bus driver a hero this morning after she managed to safely evacuate 35 students from a burning school bus.

The bus’s engine caught fire in front of the school, and the flames spread to nearby vegetation, prompting an evacuation of the entire school, said Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Concialdi. No one was injured, and firefighters managed to control the blaze within minutes.

The 20-year veteran bus driver was pulling into the school at about 8 a.m. when she noticed the engine smoking, Concialdi said. She stopped the bus and the students stood up in the aisle to get out as usual, but the driver, whose name was not immediately available, said,``Kids, we need to exit quickly,’’ Concialdi said.

“The bus driver is a total hero,” said Concialdi. “She got every single child off that bus, and no one was injured.”

The bus was destroyed by the fire. The cause of the blaze is under investigation, Concialdi.

Three of the students were emotionally distraught by the scare, he said. Firefighters treated them at the scene and released them to their parents.

The fire created alarm among parents and students as all 1325 students were evacuated to the sports field just as school was starting.

Connie Kim, a parent volunteer at the school, took comfort in the bus driver’s quick thinking response.

“She did everything right, and nobody was injured,” Kim said.

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• City News Service contributed to this report.