Girl Hailed Hero At 14 For Saving School Bus Of Students From 'Pretty Scary' Collision With Gas Station

Dec 05, 2023

A quick-thinking young girl was praised for her heroic action as she was able to save a school bus full of students before it almost collided with a gas station in Australia.

According to a report published by the Sydney Morning Herald in November 2023, a 14-year-old girl named Isabelle Miller, who goes by the nickname Izzy, was about to go home. 

Before getting onto the bus she needed to get home, she got into another one, which was located outside Casino High School in New South Wales, to talk to her friends a bit more before the buses departed.

In an interview with Today, Izzy said something was off and noticed that the driver was not there.

Tragedy struck as the bus suddenly started moving without a driver. Izzy immediately thought of a plan and sat in the driver’s seat in order to save other students on board.

Even though Izzy never drove a bus in her life, she was able to navigate and step on the brake pedal instead of an accelerator. The vehicle’s direction was then diverted, and she was able to drive away. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and Izzy saved the lives of other students because it would’ve been a disaster if the bus hit the gas station directly.

In the CCTV footage from the gas station, the bus could be seen heading in a different direction, and Izzy navigated the bus safely even though there were people and other vehicles around.

Some of the teachers from the school could also be seen attempting to push the bus away to divert its direction.

“Everyone was freaking out like ‘oh what do we do now,’” she recalled.

Although Izzy was praised for her heroic action, she admitted in the interview that it was a pretty scary experience for her, knowing that there would’ve been a disaster if she didn’t do anything that day.

“It was pretty scary to think that, if I didn’t do anything, something bad could have happened,” she said. 

Her mom, Rebecca, said she didn’t know what happened until after Izzy got home, and she said in the interview that she was relieved that nothing had happened to her daughter and the other kids who were on the bus.

Regardless, the mom was very proud of her daughter’s actions.

When the bus finally stopped, Izzy said she felt relieved as she explained: “I was pretty relieved that it actually stopped and nothing bad happened to the kids on the bus or myself.”

According to the Sydney Morning Herald’s report, Izzy was called into a meeting with the bus company Northern Rivers Buslines, where they thanked her for her actions.

In addition, she was also given a certificate and a $100 reward from the North Casino Mini Mart, the shop across the school that was almost hit by the bus if Izzy didn’t act quickly.

People were inspired by what Izzy did, so they expressed their comments on Today’s video shared on Facebook.

“This young girl should be awarded a bravery medal 🥇 she saved lives in the bus and service station,” one wrote. 

“Without actually realising it the lives this young lady with her quick thinking has saved is amazing and definitely should be recognised in some way Well done Izzy 👏🏻👏🏻,” one commented. 

What do you think of this young girl’s heroic action? What would you do if you were in the same situation as hers? Let us know your thoughts, and make sure to pass this on to your friends and family.