Lockport High School Bus Driver Hit by Buckshot from Dove Hunters

A Lockport High School school bus driver was forced to pull over and call 911 last week, telling dispatchers he had been shot in the cheek.

The bus was headed north on Parker Road north of 159th Street near Homer Glen, when the driver reportedly heard a gunshot and felt something hit his cheek, Chicago Sun-Times reports. The 59-year-old driver was hit by buckshot from dove hunters nearby, according to the report.

“Officers found a single shotgun pellet inside the bus,” Illinois Department of Natural Resource spokesman Chris Young told the Sun-Times. “The driver was examined, but refused additional treatment. The injury appeared to be minor.”

Parents of the 11 students on the bus were called, and the students went home with them. The driver refused treatment.

The hunters were apparently on private land, he said, and dove season is currently open until Nov. 14, and again Dec. 26 through Jan. 9. But hunters are not allowed to shoot across a road, and cannot hunt in a roadway ditch, median or right-of-way, according to the report.

The incident is still being investigated.