WILKES-BARRE TWP. — No students were injured as the driver of Crestwood Area School District bus suffered a medical emergency and became unresponsive while driving a bus with 13 Holy Redeemer High School students on board near the 600 block of Blackman Street.
Four Redeemer students sprang into action as they noticed the driver having a stroke. Kaden Ayre, Lainey Conway, Max Filchak — all sophomores — and Ryan Martinelli, a junior, made all the correct calls and were able to keep themselves, their classmates and other motorists safe.
Conway chuckled as she said, “I’m just glad we didn’t do anything to make it worse. I think it ended the best way it could’ve possibly ended.”
Conway added that she realized no adults were around with the driver out of commission, so they all worked together to handle to the situation.
Ayre and Filchak were seated next to each other when Filchak said he saw the driver’s face in the mirror, with his head tilted back. He told Ayre to, “Get up,” and ran up front. He asked the driver if he was okay, but the driver was not responding.
As a newly certified lifeguard, Filchak said, “Part of my training is that we were supposed to help people even if not at work.”
Martinelli, a member of the United States Navy Sea Cadet Corps, said that he noticed the driver having trouble breathing. He removed the seatbelt and loosened his jacket and shirt and tried to speak with him. As he realized the bus was rolling into the car behind them, he took the brake, before Ayre stepped in as Martinelli moved the driver from the seat.
Martinelli said his training with the Sea Cadets, and his desire to pursue a career in the Navy really helped him and that the training has been “preparing me for situations like this.”
Training aside, however, he said, “I would’ve done it either way and I would’ve done what I thought was best.”
With the driver secured, Ayre said, “I was on the brakes and I turned the bus off.” He said that he wasn’t sure how he knew what to do, just that he had to do something.
While all this transpired, Filchak jumped out the emergency door and began to let other students off, with Conway assisting as well, and was able to direct other motorists to move back as the bus was still rolling.
According to a release from the Wilkes-Barre Township Police Department:
The department received a call about the incident around 2:45 p.m. When police arrived, they witnessed bystanders attempting to assist the unconscious driver as well as two students trying to stop the bus from rolling any further.
Emergency Medical Services arrived and were able to stabilize the driver who was transported to a local facility for treatment. Crestwood superintendent Robert Mehalick arrived on scene and students were either released to their parents or guardians or given alternative transportation.
No charges have been filed as the cause of the crash was determined to be a medical emergency.
The driver remains at a local medical facility.
