Cops ask why bus driver hit the brakes

AUSTIN (KXAN) -  

Children inside the bus that stopped suddenly Wednesday spoke about the moment they fell from their seats. 

"Some of them were screaming and yelling and crying," said Hillcrest Elementary School 4th Grader Rosemary Gonzalez.

EMS crews transported 11 children, including Gonzalez, to the hospital after a Hillcrest Elementary School bus driver made a sudden stop Wednesday morning.

The Austin Police Department is investigating whether the bus driver slammed his brakes out of anger or frustration. There is no on-board surveillance equipment on the bus, school officials said .

"We are currently working with the Austin Police Department who is investigating the incident," said Hillcrest Elementary School Principal Ray Prentice in a press release Wednesday. "The safety of all our students remains our first priority."

Del Valle ISD bus driver Rene Nunez-Lemus, who has worked for the district since November 2009, was suspended Wednesday afternoon pending the outcome of the investigation, school officials said.

Although nobody at the bus driver's home would speak on camera, his 17 year old daughter defended her dad off camera.  Katherine Nunez said he is "really calm," likes his job and does not want people to judge her dad because they were not on the bus.

 

But some parents have criticized him. 

 

"Quit his job instead of hurting them. If he wasn't going to take the pressure he should have quit," said Ana Gutierrez.

 

"I am angry. I don't think he should work here anymore," said Rosie Gonzalez.

 

The Austin-Travis County EMS chief of staff said 11 children needed medical attention and were sent to Dell Children's Medical Center , all with minor injuries. Of those children, seven were complaining of neck pains.

"Once I spoke with my daughter, she informed me that there was no accident, that the bus driver was upset," said parent Regina McCalister. "Because he was mad that the kids weren't listening, and she monitors the bus. She sits the kids down. She said he asked them to stop yelling and sit down. He was mad ,and he slammed on the brakes."

"All the kids were crying, and we were trying to tell him that kids were hurt," said 12-year-old Kennedy Sorrells, McCalister's fifth-grade daughter. "And he just kept saying, 'Huh?' And he just kept driving. When we got to school, he told everyone to hurry and get off the bus so he could leave."

Seven ambulances responded to the incident, which happened at William Cannon Drive and McKinney Falls Parkway . That's less than a half-mile from the school .

EMS crews evaluated the bus full of children, 76 students from kindergarten through fifth grade.

Just before 9 a.m., officials said the scene was winding down.

The Del Valle Independent School District does not have any seat belts on its buses, and district officials have not said whether it plans to purchase new buses any time soon.

On Sept. 1, a new state law went into effect to require districts purchasing new buses after that date to have three-point belts, also known as lap-shoulder belts.

"There is no question seat belts keep kids from getting injured and even save lives. They are a good idea no matter what vehicle is on the road for kids," said Pat Crocker, Dell Children's Medical Center's Emergency Room chief of staff.

"Fortunately, this was just bumps and bruises," he continued. "These kids were lucky." 

Del Valle ISD's director of communications and community relations said that all district buses have surveillance cameras on them. However, since the regular bus was being maintained, the fleet's spare bus was used Wednesday morning when the incident happened.

That bus did not have a camera installed.

School officials said they were cooperating fully with Austin police.

"Bus drivers at Del Valle ISD are trained beyond bus operations in student behavior management, student evacuations, communication management with parents, and a 20 hour required course from TEA that is required prior to driving students," said Celina Bley, director of Communications and Community Relations. "All transportation employees are also fingerprinted and their driving record is evaluated prior to employment."