"I told the kids to just run" Hero school bus driver describes fiery crash

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ga. — For the first time, we're hearing from the school bus driver who got all of her students off the bus after it caught fire during an accident.

The crash happened along Old Alabama and Maxham roads Friday.

Channel 2's Audrey Washington obtained video from the school bus that showed the moment the driver of a pickup truck slammed into the Douglas County school bus.

"When he hit the bus, it was hard, the bus actually went over. We thought we were going to roll,"  bus driver Shuronda Crawford-Richardson said.

Crawford-Richardson remained calm and checked to see if the students were OK.

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Moments later, in the video, a good Samaritan banged on the door, shouting that the bus was on fire.

That’s when the driver quickly rushed each of the three children off the bus.

“We noticed it and we saw smoke,” Crawford-Richardson said. “I didn’t think it was that bad but it just got worse and the bus was definitely on fire, so I told the kids to just run.”

Everyone escaped without even a scratch.

Crawford-Richardson, who has three children of her own, says her motherly instincts just kicked in.

“In an event like that, you don’t have a lot of time to work with. You can only go with what you’re taught, go do it, you know?" she said.

The driver of the pick-up truck survived.

Crawford Richardson will be honored by the Douglas County School District for her lifesaving actions.

Cox Media Group