wistv.com - Columbia, South Carolina |Driver honored for saving kids from burning school bus

Driver honored for saving kids from burning school bus

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CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - A Charlotte woman being called a hero for saving six children from a burning school bus was honored on Monday.

Lindora Richardson was presented with a certificated from Charlotte Fire Department Chief Jon B. Hannan for her work to safely evacuate bus 295 after it caught fire on February 8 just before 5 p.m. in the 1200 block of Bearmore Drive in southeast Charlotte 

A ceremony was held at 10 a.m. at Chantilly Montessori School in east Charlotte, the same school that the students attend.

Those six students also received recognition from the CFD for their quick response and bravery.

Richardson had only been on her third day with Bus 295's route, filling in for another driver.

"It was very scary," Richardson told WBTV on Monday. "Looking back at it, I'm glad I made a decision at that moment to go ahead and evacuate the bus."

Eleven-year-old Lillie Moller rides bus 295 every day and credits Richardson will keeping them all safe.

"I think that she was the one that helped us through it," the sixth grader shared. "She was the hero of the day."

"I want to tell her 'thank you' and that I appreciate it because it could have got really bad," said Tashonna Dean, another student ushered to safety from the burning bus.

"So we get off the bus, and then it started getting black, and I seen a little spark of fire coming out," said Dean.

But Richardson kept calm and collected, humbly calling it just another day on the job.

When asked how she felt about the many words of kindness said by the parents of those children she got to safety, the school bus driver of five years said, "I'm grateful for them to be thanking me for, you know, for doing my job, basically."

Investigators are still trying to figure out what started the fire.

Published reports in recent years have pointed to the fact that several school busses have been recalled by their manufacturers.

CMS bus 295 was made by Freightliner, and Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools officials want to make sure that there haven't been any been past problems.

A CMS spokesperson told WBTV they have more than 800 busses on the road most days transporting more than 30 thousand students.

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