A school bus driver is being hailed as a hero after she saved a child from being hit by a passing car.
In a heart-stopping video that’s gone viral, first-year school bus driver April Wise makes a stop along her route to let a child off at their destination. As the child begins to exit the bus, Wise notices a car is about to pass her vehicle illegally on the right side — the same side as the bus exit.
Wise springs into action.
“Wait, wait! No, no! Stay, stay!” she yells, grabbing the child by their backpack just as they’re about to step off the bus, saving them from possibly being hit by the oncoming car.
Watch below:
“It was just mother instincts that kicked in,” Wise told Good Morning America, while the child’s aunt, Amy Mendenhall, called Wise “our family hero tonight.”
Speaking to Good Morning America, an Ohio district spokesperson said they and their “colleagues throughout the county … see this on a frequent basis.”
“Cars are just not stopping for the red lights. This isn’t the first time we’ve had a driver save a student and have video of it … We are feeling very grateful this evening for the alertness and quick actions of one of our amazing bus drivers,” they continued.
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Ohio state representative Bernard Willis and Clark County commissioner Lowell McGlothin congratulated Wise after surveillance footage of the moment went viral, and Ohio’s Department of Transportation is also implementing the video as part of its School Bus Driving Training program.
“We’re beyond grateful to April Wise, Tecumseh Local Schools bus driver, for her dedicated service and instant reaction to keep a student safe from a passing car,” the Ohio Department of Transportation said in a statement.