Dozens rescued from school bus trapped in Ida floodwaters, Pennsylvania photos show
Dozens of people were on a school bus when it became stuck in rising flood waters in Pennsylvania.
All 41 people on board were rescued after crews floated a boat up to the stranded bus Wednesday morning, photos from a Pittsburgh-area fire department show.
The bus was evacuated the same day remnants of Tropical Depression Ida were forecast to drench the region.
At about 6:50 a.m. Wednesday, the Cherry City Volunteer Fire Company was called to a trapped bus on Seavey Road, northeast of downtown Pittsburgh.
The bus reportedly got stuck as students were headed to Shaler Area High School. Police and fire officials helped to evacuate everyone who had been riding the bus, which was owned by ABC Transit Inc., district spokesperson Bethany Baker told McClatchy News in an email.
Photos from the fire department show rescuers standing in nearly waist-deep water while holding a boat up to an open door at the back of the bus.
No one was injured during the incident, the Shaler Township Police Department told KDKA. Baker said the students did eventually make it to the high school.
Local drivers are asked to avoid Seavey Road, which was “closed between Soose Road and Elbe Drive” as of 7:20 a.m., according to the Shaler Township Police Department.
At about 7:40 a.m., the Shaler Area school district in a Facebook post said it would close elementary and primary campuses on Wednesday, citing “continued rainfall & worsening road conditions.” Other schools were set to run on their typical schedules.
Representatives from ABC Transit, Cherry City Volunteer Fire Company and the Shaler Township Police Department didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ requests for additional information about the trapped bus on Wednesday.
Ida was a Category 4 hurricane when it barreled into the Louisiana coast Sunday morning. It has left a path of damage on its way from the Gulf to the northeast.
This story was originally published September 1, 2021 at 3:33 PM with the headline "Dozens rescued from school bus trapped in Ida floodwaters, Pennsylvania photos show."
