After everything, he simply said he was doing his job.
Stewart O’Leary had been a school bus driver in Bellevue, Washington for decades. His most eventful drives until February 13 were the occasionally rowdy sports team. Otherwise, his job was simple: move students and teams from one spot to another.
O’Leary was headed to pick up a basketball team that morning when a stray piece of metal was kicked up by a car in front of him on the highway. The piece of metal pierced through the windshield and hit O’Leary in the chest.
Cameras on the bus pointing toward the driver showed O’Leary clutching his chest and exclaiming, but he never let go of the wheel. Coaches rushed up to the driver’s seat to see how they could help. Still, O’Leary maintained control and pulled over safely. Emergency personnel arrived shortly after.
“I’m glad it was me, not them. Any of my passengers,” O’Leary told WXII.
Glass in the face didn’t slow the bus driver
O’Leary’s chest was bruised, and some of the glass from the windshield cut his face. He took a few days off to recover. Now, he’s behind the wheel once again.
“I knew I was going to be okay, but it certainly could have gone a different way,” he said. “[Medical personnel] were pulling glass out of my face and patched me up a little bit.”
School staff regard O’Leary as a hero, as no other injuries were reported. The team made it back safely.
The bus yard put the broken windshield on display
The windshield was replaced, but O’Leary’s employers decided to keep the shattered windshield in the office. That way, O’Leary and other drivers can be inspired every time they leave the building.
O’Leary decided to keep the piece of metal as a souvenir.
“Did it come from an overpass somewhere in the area? I have no idea,” he said. “But I kept the team safe, and that’s my job as a bus driver. None of them got hurt, and I’m pretty happy about that.”
