A bus driver speaks out after being hit by a flying piece of metal on the job. Stewart O’Leary, a Washington State bus driver was hit by a metal piece while driving a bus along Interstate 405 at speeds of more than 60 miles per hour last Friday. He was driving the high school girls’ basketball team to their game when he was struck.
O’Leary said, “I’m glad that it was me and not any of my passengers.” “I did my job as a bus driver, which is to transport students safely,” he said.
“I kept the girls safe. That’s what the job of a bus driver is — transporting students safely — and I did that,” he said.
O’Leary remained calm behind the wheel despite his sudden pain. Two of the team’s coaches rushed to help O’Leary after hearing him yell.
Coach Chris Pinder, of North Creek High School’s junior varsity girls’ basketball team, recalled: “As I heard the screams I immediately looked up to see if the driver was okay.”
O’Leary, while Pinder was calling 911 to request “fire and medical services”, managed to move the bus to the shoulder of the road.
In the video, Pinder can be heard telling O’Leary, “OK, hit the breaks, hit the breaks. Get the flashers on and hit the breaks.”
Coach Calvin McHenry – the head basketball instructor – also took action.
McHenry stated, “I grabbed his wheel because he was grasping his heart and chest a bit.”
O’Leary, after emergency medical services arrived at the scene, was taken to a hospital to be treated for serious cuts and bruises on his chest. The cracked windshield, now displayed in the bus office of the school district, was also given to O’Leary as a souvenir.
The coaches praised O’Leary who had already returned to his job less than a month after the incident.
Amazingly, he kept the bus running after such an unexpected event. Pinder described Pinder as “a really, truly great guy”.
Authorities are still trying to determine what the flying piece of metal is and where it originated.
