Eastern Railroad Discussion > School Bus gets hit by Train - Driver. "Not gonna stop ..."

Sumter County Florida

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/not-gonna-stop-for-no-train-bus-driver-charged-after-train-clips-bus-full-of-kids-when-she-ignored-railroad-crossing-signal-cops-say/ar-AA20mggX?ocid=winp1taskbar&cvid=d5ec9186893d48f2cc4cad23882639de&ei=37

School bus with kids gets bus clipped by train as driver does not stop.

Pretty scary.

I had an incident about 30 years ago when a school bus driver hit a trainman flagging a crossing with vest and red flag.
Ran over the trainman and hit the side of the train. Said she didn't see anything in front of her. Fortunately her bus was empty.
She was not fired, just taken off routes with railroad crossings.

Apparently this driver saw the warning devices but decided not to stop.
This driver in Florida is spending time in jail.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/07/26 17:31 by train1275.

Released on bond, fired from her job

https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/former-school-bus-driver-released-30k-bond-after-train-crash-29-students

Posted from Android

If she had a class B commercial license which is what she needed to drive a school bus she will never get another commercial license in her kifetime. A regular license yes but not a commercial license. Her school bus driving days are done . -- Ken 

Around here, schools are very desperate for school bus drivers. Perhaps in some scenarios they are not testing enough for personality,decision making or skill level that affects driving aptitude? Some people just arent safe behind the wheel to handle other people's lives.

Victor Baird

Posted from Android



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 04/10/26 11:48 by wabash2800.

When I was in high school, I was able to produce a very loud, reasonably accurate 'blat' air horn vocally.   And rode a school bus every day.   I already had a rep as the 'train guy'.

We came home over multiple grade crossings, and the driver was pretty d--- careless.  Laws had been passed in the state that the driver had to full stop, open side doors, and look both ways even if crossing was not activated.   Well, he pretty much blew through on a regular basis.

I was 'dared' to get on right behind him, first full seat for cover and get down and hide down behind it.   I was clued by my seat partner the exact moment to cut loose full blast for a two long, short, long call, which I did.   We skidded to a stop, him frantically looking up and down and realizing he'd been had.    He yelled a lot, nobody gave me up.   He got the message and at least slowed and looked again even if he didn't stop.

But years later, when the laws were tightened, he blew a loaded bus through a set of flashers with a train coming (slowly) and got caught by the state police.   End of his bus driving.

That personality type does exist.    And if you look at that video, she also misjudged the distance past the crossing, which is how the bus got clipped.  

randgust Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> When I was in high school, I was able to produce a
> very loud, reasonably accurate 'blat' air horn
> vocally.   And rode a school bus every day. 
>  I already had a rep as the 'train guy'.
>
> We came home over multiple grade crossings, and
> the driver was pretty d--- careless.  Laws had
> been passed in the state that the driver had to
> full stop, open side doors, and look both ways
> even if crossing was not activated.   Well, he
> pretty much blew through on a regular basis.
>
> I was 'dared' to get on right behind him, first
> full seat for cover and get down and hide down
> behind it.   I was clued by my seat partner the
> exact moment to cut loose full blast for a two
> long, short, long call, which I did.   We
> skidded to a stop, him frantically looking up and
> down and realizing he'd been had.    He yelled a
> lot, nobody gave me up.   He got the message and
> at least slowed and looked again even if he didn't
> stop.
>
> But years later, when the laws were tightened, he
> blew a loaded bus through a set of flashers with a
> train coming (slowly) and got caught by the state
> police.   End of his bus driving.
>
> That personality type does exist.    And if you
> look at that video, she also misjudged the
> distance past the crossing, which is how the bus
> got clipped.  

In a certain City randgust and I both know, I used to walk to work which included a railroad crossing on the way. Almost every morning I was within sight of it when a school bus would approach slowly, then stop with the front third of the bus on the tracks, the driver would then open the door and look both ways before starting up and driving off the tracks. Just blows me away that the bus (occupied) would stop on the tracks. .... 

Thankfully I never had a school bus issue when operating a train.

"Not gonna, not gonna, not gonna work here anymore."

I had a bus driver who would do that at a blind crossing. I guess her reasoning was that if a train was coming, she had to see it... People were killed at that crossing but fortunately not us.

Victor Baird


Almost every morning I was within
> sight of it when a school bus would approach
> slowly, then stop with the front third of the bus
> on the tracks, the driver would then open the door
> and look both ways before starting up and driving
> off the tracks. Just blows me away that the bus
> (occupied) would stop on the tracks. .... 
>
> Thankfully I never had a school bus issue when
> operating a train.

Posted from Android



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/08/26 12:38 by wabash2800.

Kemacprr Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If she had a class B commercial license which is
> what she needed to drive a school bus she will
> never get another commercial license in her
> kifetime. A regular license yes but not a
> commercial license. Her school bus driving days
> are done . -- Ken 

If common sense prevailed, she would never again be allowed to have ANY driver's license. Period!

baretables Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> "Not gonna, not gonna, not gonna work here
> anymore."

Hahaha. Guess I’m the only one that caught this reference.

UP6936 with a engineering special clipped a bumper of a lady who lived next to the tracks she just parked it in her driveway, not sure it even hurt the car

 https://wsvn.com/news/local/florida/i-felt-scared-students-aboard-bus-that-was-clipped-by-train-in-central-florida-speak-out-on-terrifying-incident/ 

SUMTER COUNTY, Fla. (WSVN) — Students are speaking out about the terrifying moment when a train was going to hit the school bus they were on.

It was a close call that left dozens of children shaken and a driver is now facing criminal charges. Even though the terrifying incident occurred last Thursday, students say the fear is still fresh after a train struck the side of their bus as they rode home from school in Central Florida. 

“I felt scared,” said student Isabelle Sinibaldi. “I felt scared, terrified. I was in shock,” another student said. 

Authorities said nearly 30 students were on board when a fast-moving train clipped the bus at a railroad crossing last Thursday. No one was injured, but students described the impact as far more severe than it might sound. “It didn’t feel like a clip. It felt like something actually hit the whole bus,” said Sinibaldi. 

Sinibaldi, who was seated near the back, recalled bracing for the worst. “I tried to press on my seatbelt and it wouldn’t unlatch so that’s when I covered my head and I closed my eyes as hard as I can and hoped that nothing bad happened,” Sinibaldi said. 

Investigators say the bus driver, 67-year-old Yvonne Hampton, is now charged with child neglect and failure to stop at a railroad crossing. “Trains don’t sneak up on people, folks. It was poor judgment, and that’s what led to this arrest. Poor judgment that placed children at risk,” said Sumter County Sheriff Pat Breedon. 

According to authorities, Hampton told police “there was a car at the intersection and she was waiting for the car to move.” She said “the car began to move so she began to go over the other side of the tracks but the car stopped.” However, an arrest affidavit states that a responding officer reviewed video in which Hampton can allegedly be heard saying, “not gonna stop for no train.” 

Officials emphasized that proper safety procedures were not followed. “Anytime we have a bus that’s approaching train tracks, they should stop before the tracks, open their door, look both ways, listen, and then if it’s safe, then obviously proceed across the tracks. That did not happen,” said Sumter County School Superintendent Logan Brown. 

While parents expressed relief that no one was hurt, many say the incident raises serious concerns. “There was a fear that it could have been way worse than what it was,”  said parent Ashley Pharis. 

School administrators said in response to the incident, bus routes will be changed to avoid the railroad crossing where the crash occurred.

Many counties in FL have trouble recruiting bus drivers, bus matrons, etc.  Palm Beach County offers about $21 per hour, with paid benefits. And, they pay you to earn a CDL if you don't have one. 

Even with these wages PBCSD is perenially short staffed

Sumter County, where this incident happened, pays their school bus drivers very well.  Wages range from $19 to $38 per hour.