FIRST PERSON
McKenzie Mayhem: Oregon Driver Recalls Freak Storm That Battered His School Bus
By Garner Warren IT REMINDED ME OF MY DAYS GROW-
ING UP IN THE SOUTH. On this sunny, early June day, I drove a
group of middle-schoolers up the McKen- zie River to a salmon fish hatchery in Lane County, Ore., one of the most popular field trips in our school district near Eugene. When we arrived, the class went into one of the buildings. I parked the school bus nearby and did what drivers normally do — read and snack — to pass the time. Te radio was tuned to a Top 20 music station.
driver’s seat to resume reading. Periodi- cally, I glanced out the windows at the de- veloping sky. Abruptly, the familiar series of audible
chirps came over the radio station, inter- rupting the broadcast. Something told me it wasn’t another test of the emergency broadcast system or even an Amber Alert. I just had that feeling based on what I had observed outside. The National Weather Service out of
Portland, in that metallic automated voice, issued a severe thunderstorm warning for our part of Lane County. The warning stated that a severe thun- derstorm was located north of Oakridge and was moving
to the northwest,
which meant it was moving toward our fish hatchery. Winds gusting to 60 miles per hour with nickel-sized hail were ex- pected, according to the warning. By this time, the wind was more con-
stant and thunder rumbled from over the hills. Te sky became a darker gray. Te students and staff on the field trip
Occasionally, a group of middle-school-
ers and their chaperones walked from one building to another by the exterior salmon pools. Netting affixed and draped from above the pools protected the small fish from predators. Minutes of peace and relaxation passed as I waited. The weather suddenly changed. Hear-
ing the leaves rustling, I looked up to see a mix of dark and white clouds. To my north, white and gray rain clouds drifted southward. To my southeast, gray clouds drifted north-westwardly toward the school bus from an omi- nously darker sky just over the forested hills. The wind became more brisk. And more sustained. After moving throughout the bus while observing the clouds, I returned to the
were nowhere to be seen, assumed to still be inside one of the smaller exhibit areas where salmon have their eggs extracted. Rushing from seat to seat, I pushed up
all windows to shut them. I also closed the two roof vents to keep the rain out. Starting the engine, I moved the bus and pointed it northward, away from the ad- vancing storm. While waiting in anticipa- tion of the class possibly returning to the bus, I sat and watched the weather with the motor running. From inside the school bus, I observed
the darker clouds now nearly completely overhead. As thunder sounded and the sky flashed, a solid wall of rain advanced with a gust of wind. It appeared to visibly swirl in the distance as it advanced. Ten, the mayhem began. Hail the size of marbles rapidly slammed
relentlessly upon the exterior of the bus, creating quite the kettle of noise. Visibility
40 School Transportation News Magazine May 2010
instantly decreased with the accompany- ing rain. Tunder clapped and rumbled more as the hail continued. Te school bus shook under the force of the wind gusts, which seemed every bit as strong as the forewarned 60 miles per hour. Te wind persisted, amplifying the
downpour of large raindrops. I looked up at a nearby tall tree and watched the wind sway the top of it at an extreme angle. To my mild horror, that top of the tree snapped violently before my very eyes. It fell at least 100 feet and landed with a loud thud upon the lawn. Nearby, a lady screamed at the spectacle and frantically ran for cover. As the hail and wind continued to pum-
mel the bus, I looked around and noticed that several elephant trunk-sized branch- es had also snapped from a tree behind the bus. Tey laid just several feet away from where I had moved the bus. Finally, the hail and thunder subsided.
A moment later, a man showed up from inside the building. Ten the rest of the adults and students rushed through the rain onto the bus. Tey spoke of the pow- er going out and shrouding the class in darkness. Te group had remained safely indoors as the storm struck. Damage was apparent along the high-
way leading back to Springfield, with nu- merous branches and twigs littering the road within the immediate area of the fish hatchery. No one in the group was hurt and the school bus did not receive any notable damage from the storm. Te vehicle’s rounded metallic structure once again withstood a force, repelling the strike of the marble-sized hail and the strong winds. Te storm had passed, leav- ing a bit of excitement in an otherwise or- dinary late spring day. ■
Warren has been a school bus driver since 1996, with his past 11 years driving for Springfield (Ore.) Public Schools.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68