smaller districts that have fewer resources. Tese tragic events have long term-effects on children’s learning, the overall school environment and on the transportation sys- tem itself, according to Pfohl. Parents might be afraid to allow their kids back on the bus. “Te district needs to make sure that
the kids are safe and secure and that they address that. Tese tragedies are
sometimes considered separate from the school, but they are not,” added Pfohl. After dealing with the immediate pain
and sorrow felt by the families, students and staff, the district must look at ways to ensure reducing the possibility of a similar tragedy ever happening again. For some, the decisions are made quickly, no matter the cost.
Twelve years ago, after a student died
in New Jersey, Cassell looked at the acci- dent and quickly concluded that if the bus had crossing gates, the child would still be alive. So Laidlaw responded by installing the devices on 38,000 buses. “It’s not just about how did we fail, but
what are we going to do going forward?” added Cassell. ■
Practice Makes Perfect Aside from the emotional ef-
fects of a tragedy, districts and the community must learn how to respond to the actual crash or incident scene. Controlled exercises are increasingly being used as training tools for district employees, local law enforce- ment, fire and EMS providers to practice the role each agency must play in saving the lives of victims. This summer at the STN EXPO in Reno, Nev., the SPARTAN Task Force (Schools Prepared and Ready Together Across Nevada) will present an exercise that will show attendees some best prac- tices for responding to a school bus crash. “It’s really coming along,” said
Nevada State Director Diana Hol- lander, who is also a member of the SPARTAN Task Force. “This is going to be a full-city emergency exercise.” The exercise, known as Opera-
tion Broken Axle, will consist of two school buses on a fictitious activity trip that collide because of a broken axle on one of the vehicles. The final staging ground for the exercise has yet to be chosen, but the exercise is quickly taking shape and will be held on Wednesday, July 27. Washoe County School District will provide school buses to ferry STN EXPO attendees to the off- site event.
42 School Transportation News Magazine May 2011
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