Robertson County Schools’ director addresses bus safety, severe weather preparedness
ROBERTSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — Several county school districts closed last Wednesday due to severe weather, but Robertson County Schools remained open.
“I’d rather have to take a day and no one get injured than have school and somebody get injured,” Patrick Cripps, director of schools for DeKalb County, previously said in an interview with News 2. “One of the worst times the storms can hit is when our buses are out on the road, and we have students out on the road and our staff driving in.”
The director of schools for Robertson County, Dr. Danny Weeks, told News 2 that at any given time, they have nearly 100 buses to manage between 22 school campuses. He said it was difficult to manage given the severe weather, rapid changes in school bus locations, and an increase in radio traffic.
As the severe weather arrived on Wednesday, May 8, two school buses filled with students had to take shelter at a gas station after hearing tornado sirens. When prompted by the gas attendant, those students exited the bus and took shelter inside the building.
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“I could see all the kids [on the bus] getting down in their seats, ready to take shelter, so we both went out there, and we were like, ‘You guys can come take shelter in the store so you’re not just in this big metal box,'” Shell clerk Meagan said. “That’s so dangerous.”
Weeks told News 2 that, in general, Robertson County Schools’ bus drivers follow the manual for commercial driver licenses and participate in annual training.
“They should know what those expectations are,” Weeks said. “Certainly, that’s part of having that radio and having that communication from your direct supervisor, who gives you additional directions.”
The district closed on Thursday, May 9 and then had a delayed opening on Friday, May 10. That morning, Weeks said a Robertson County school bus carrying an estimated dozen kids got stuck in floodwaters.
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One local mom said her kids were supposed to be on the bus.
“Something told me that morning when I woke up to not allow my kids to load onto the bus,” Brittney Stokes, a Robertson County Schools mother, said. “Once I started getting pictures and phone calls about it, I was actually devastated. I was highly upset with Robertson County School District because Robertson County Transportation does have a page of where they had logged roads not to travel down. Williams Road was never on that list, so I feel like the bus driver is getting blamed for something that falls back on the district.”
Weeks said that when the bus drivers were sent to pick up students, officials trusted the bus drivers’ discretion regarding road safety.
“It was one of those things that he apparently thought he could made it through that area, made that decision on his own; and again, we would’ve hoped that he would’ve radioed and asked for some additional discretion,” Weeks said.
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“It is more than just him. He is the bottom man who got all of the shame, and I could only imagine how he feels,” Stokes said. “He knows he made a mistake, and people make mistakes.”
Weeks told News 2 that when deciding on a delayed opening or school closure, the school district relies on information from the local emergency management agency, the National Weather Service, and other county school directors.
With several days still left in the tornado season, Weeks said conversations regarding improvement when it comes to communication and policy are happening.
“Is it something we just need to reinforce some training that drivers have already had?” Weeks asked. “Or is it a policy procedure change that needs to happen? And again, those are things our transportation office is working with our drivers, working with all their coordinators in that building to do.”
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