St Paul Man Stops Runaway School Bus After Driver’s Medical Emergency

A Minnesota man boarded a moving school bus and pulled its emergency brake after noticing that its driver appeared to be experiencing a medical emergency, The Guardian and Good News Network reported.

Ebro Ahmed, 27, was taking a break outside his family’s Ya Bricks Snacks and Tobacco store in Saint Paul when he intervened. Both outlets reported that his actions stopped the bus and protected the children travelling inside.

The outlets gave different passenger counts. Good News Network reported that 18 students were saved, while The Guardian cited the public school district as saying that 19 students were onboard. Good News Network’s headline described the driver as having a seizure; The Guardian reported that the district confirmed a medical emergency.

According to The Guardian, Ahmed was kicking a soccer ball and looking at his phone outside the shop on Monday afternoon when he noticed a yellow school bus moving past with its door open. He realised something was wrong after seeing foam coming from the driver’s mouth.

Ahmed ran towards the vehicle, jumped through the doorway and handed his phone and glasses to two girls near the front so that he could use both hands, The Guardian reported.

He initially considered whether he could put the bus into park. Instead, with children screaming around him, he pulled the emergency brake and brought it to a halt. Nobody onboard or on the street was injured, according to The Guardian.

Ahmed then asked a child to call for emergency assistance. The school district confirmed that paramedics attended and that another bus took the students home. The driver was treated at a hospital, discharged and was resting at home, The Guardian reported.

Both outlets identified Ahmed as 27. Good News Network described him as Eritrean-American and placed the store in Saint Paul’s Dayton’s Bluff neighbourhood.

The Guardian reported that Ahmed attributed his decision to intervene partly to a Qur’an verse expressing the idea that saving one person’s life is equivalent to saving humanity. He also credited the television drama Grey’s Anatomy with helping him understand how to respond in an unexpected emergency.

Surveillance cameras at the family shop recorded the intervention. According to The Guardian, local outlet KSTP published the footage, which spread widely alongside its interview with Ahmed.

Ahmed also spoke about what the attention meant for his family and community. The Guardian reported that his parents immigrated from Eritrea and that he was born in the United States. He said business at the shop had declined after federal immigration agents arrived in Saint Paul and nearby Minneapolis during the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge.

Against that backdrop, Ahmed welcomed the opportunity to represent Eritreans and east Africans positively, The Guardian reported.

A local marketing and media company gave him $1,000 in recognition of his actions, with a Superman performer and novelty cheque involved in the presentation. A city council member contacted him, he received an invitation to speak on a panel, and an uncle in Europe learned about the rescue through the news, according to The Guardian.

Ahmed said seeing the story circulate among Eritrean communities was particularly meaningful to him, the newspaper reported.

Sources

• The Guardian: Verse from Qu’ran inspired US man to leap on runaway school bus and halt it
• Good News Network: Minnesota Worker Jumps Onto Runaway School Bus to Save 18 Kids After Driver has Seizure