JAMESTOWN, N.C. (WGHP) — A car crashed into a Guilford County Schools bus with students on it on Monday.
The driver of the car has been charged, and a concerned mother is now speaking out after her doorbell camera captured the car hitting the back of her daughter’s school bus.
The crash happened on Kivett Drive around 3 p.m. A bus was taking Allen Jay Elementary School students home and was hit by a car from behind.
“I heard a loud noise … First thing I thought of was something happened to my daughter getting off the bus,” Benaiah Morgan said.
Morgan said when she went to investigate the loud noise outside her home, she saw a car had crashed into the bus her 9-year-old daughter was riding on.
Her Ring doorbell recorded the crash.
“The bus kind of slid up a little bit and stopped … but the driver looked like … he wasn’t paying attention … Just a crazy situation to deal with for my daughter,” Morgan said.
North Carolina Highway Patrol troopers responded to investigate. Troopers say the driver was cited for failure to reduce speed.
The report said when the GCS bus slowed down to drop off a student, the car behind the bus didn’t stop.
Morgan said her daughter was standing up to get off the bus when it was hit. She says her daughter has a sore wrist and is shaken up from the crash.
“It could have been a lot worse if she was actually getting off the bus,” Morgan said.
Troopers are reminding drivers to keep a safe distance behind school buses, avoid distractions like your cellphone and look out for those red flashing lights on buses.
Morgan says she and her daughter are both nervous for her next school bus ride.
She has a message for drivers.
“Just pay attention even if you’re not behind the bus. Just pay attention because these kids get hit by busses … because people are not paying attention. It’s just simple,” Morgan said.
Troopers also remind drivers to be aware of the yellow flashing lights that indicate a bus is preparing to stop or unload children, and that red flashing lights and extended stop arms indicate the bus has stopped and children are getting on or off.
There is a $500 penalty for drivers passing a stopped school bus, and a five-point penalty on your driver’s license.