Schlegel Farms, Hagerstown Indiana | ..................I've driven in my twenty seven years behind the wheel.
Started out just looking dark and stormy when we left school, then about half way through the route the rain arrived followed closely by bolt lightening like I've never seen. I backed up a couple lanes to get kids closer to their houses rather than let them out in the open.
I was down to five students at three stops when it cut loose. The school principle came across the two way radio saying that tornado sirens were going off in town. The local radio station was giving a report of location, but by then it had started hailing so hard that I could not hear the radio (school bus = some one beating on a tin can for acoustics).
I'd slowed to about 5-10 mph because visibility was about twenty yards. I new I was about a half mile from the next stop, so I asked the two girls who lived there if they had a basement in there house. When they said yes my plan was to try to get to their house and take shelter. Luckily before we got there the storm had pushed on through and it was easing up so I let them off and finished the rest of the route.
I never had such a feeling of being out of control (weather wise) in my life. Out in the middle of nowhere, what ditches there were were running full of water (no way to lay down in them)...rain & hail...lightening...wind, and twenty yard visibility. There could have been a tornado a quarter of a mile away headed right towards me, and I wouldn't of had a clue.
When I got home my rain gauge showed that we had gotten 1.1" of rain in about ten minutes.
On a lighter note, I had a young boy setting behind me ask when I was trying to make it to the girls house if "I could drive a little faster because he was kind of scared" . I thought to my self "Don't feel like the Lone Ranger kid I'm scared to death myself", but I just said "don't worry we will be fine".
I think I'm going to go check the Miller Lite supply in the fridg and kick my feet up ...I've had enough excitement for one day. |
Worse School Bus Route.............
