School Bus Driver Fired After Leaving 40 Elementary Students On The Side Of The Road; Said To Have Threatened Them To Be Quiet!

Noir Nation! Parents of a Colorado elementary school are demanding answers after their children were threatened by a substitute bus driver to be quiet and ultimately abandoned on the side of the road for hours!

The horrific incident occurred on Monday, November 18th as students of Clear Sky Elementary School loaded up on the bus. According to NBC 9 News, students state that the driver refused to leave the school’s parking lot until the kids stopped talking.

“We got on the bus and there was a substitute,” said 10-year-old Clear Sky student Caitlyn Zavadil. “He wouldn’t let us leave the school until we stopped talking.” She told the outlet that the students left school later that they normally would.

“He finally left, and he was skipping all the kids’ stops, and when I say all the kids, I mean all the kids,” Caitlyn said. “And we felt like when he was driving and missing our stops, like we were getting kidnapped.”

Students state that the driver ultimately stopped two miles away from the school at the corner of East Wolfensberger Road and Auburn Drive abandoning a total of forty students.

“He stopped like right here at this intersection, like about right here, and said ‘everybody get off my bus,’” Caitlyn said. “And then everybody was like stressing, like crying.”

Sources state that the bus driver pulled off around 5PM. Students state that it was cold and that it was beginning to get dark. “And then we forgot our jackets on the bus out of stress. Yeah, we were shivering,” Caitlyn and her sister, Keira.

Reports read that it was roughly thirty degrees that evening.

“Me and my little sister, we live like two miles away from here, so we had like no idea what to do,” Caitlyn said.

According to the girls’ mother Ashley Stark, a stranger helped them to contact her and drove them home. “I was absolutely petrified, and for a stranger to call me and tell me that she had my children in the car and they were crying and screaming, and bright red and frozen,” said Ashley.

“This wasn’t an honest mistake or a slip-up. There were a lot of ways the driver could have handled this,” said Ashley. “It’s just unfathomable and I think there needs to be some accountability on the Department of Transportation.”

An email from the Douglas County School District was forwarded to the parents of each student regarding the unfortunate incident.

“I want to sincerely express my deepest apologies for the unsettling experience your children endured on Monday afternoon,” wrote District’s Chief operations officer Rich Cosgrove. “Through our investigation, we have gained a better understanding of what occurred and feel it is important to share the details we can confirm with you.”

“On Monday, a relief driver was covering route #253,” the email continued. “Relief drivers are full-time employees who step in as needed across our 850 square mile district. Your child’s route consists of 12 stops. On the third stop on Monday afternoon, the bus stopped just short of the usual location, leading to some confusion. At that time, the remaining 40 students on the bus all exited, with many getting off at the wrong bus stop.”

“Regrettably, the driver did not follow protocol when this happened,” the letter concluded. “The driver should have immediately notified DCSD transportation dispatch.”

Officials also assured parents that the driver is no longer employed by the school district. “I have also learned that some of you wish to view the video footage from your child’s bus on Monday,” the email said. “At this time, there is an active investigation with the Castle Rock Police Department and we are unable to share the video.”

The driver identified as Irving Johnson has also issued an apology confirming that he has been fired in response to the circumstances. “Oh, I would just like to apologize. I am sorry. I wish I had done better,” Johnson said.

“I should have stopped and shut the bus, and talked to the parents, and gotten in their heads to get the kids back on the bus who had gotten off. And I didn’t think to do that, and that was my fault, and that’s why I got terminated. That’s what they told me.”