PUTNAM COUNTY, WV (WOWK) – Parents are speaking out after a bus driver allegedly drove students through a flooded roadway on Thursday.
“My initial reaction was just sick to my stomach. I just cannot believe that he thought it was a good idea to drive through that much water,” said Angela Adkins, a Winfield High School parent.
Adkins said there were students from Winfield High School and Middle School on the bus at the time because both schools were dismissed two hours early due to heavy rain.
Her daughter captured a video from inside the bus as the driver proceeded through flood waters on North Poplar Fork Road.
“I knew they were already through it and I knew she was home, but I couldn’t imagine how scared those kids were with all of that water around them,” Adkins said.
Other parents, like David Toney, who also had a child on the bus, had similar concerns about the incident.
“When we send our kids to school we expect every employee to keep our kids safe,” Toney said. “No matter how deep the water was, at no time are you to drive through floodwater. That bus driver had no idea of the road conditions under the water.”
A spokesperson with Putnam County Schools said the district was notified about the alleged incident Thursday evening.
“The Transportation Department, along with PCS Administration, is in the process of investigating the alleged incident. Additionally, early Friday morning, PCS administration and transportation department administrators contacted families that may have had students on the bus to notify them of the situation.”
