On the 9600 block of 51st Avenue in College Park, Md. a school bus driver became a hero.
On Sept. 12, a school bus caught fire around 4:45 p.m. bus caught fire on 51st Avenue near Hollywood road, according to City of College Park Council Member Fezlul Kabir. Investigators from the Branchville Volunteer Fire Company in College Park said that they are not sure of how the fire started, but it may have originated near one of the bus’ back wheels.
Reneita Smith saved 20 children from a burning school bus in College Park, Md.
A photo of the burned school bus. (Courtesy photos.)
The fire was caught on a dash-cam video from the volunteer chief of Branchville, which showed the flames rising over the the hood of the bus.
According to the Prince George’s County Fire Department, the bus was carrying 20 children from Glenarden Woods Elementary School. None of the children were injured in the fire.
The children were rescued by the bus’ driver who Kabir identified in a Facebook post as Reneita Smith.
“Reneita took each one of the 20 kids from the bus one by one, but also went into the empty bus again to check if everyone was out, while it was still burning,” said Kabir in his post.
“I am a mom of two kids. It’s my job to save them,” Kabir said Smith told him.
A video of the bus fire can be viewed at youtube.com/watch?v=lQReDKXz4_c.