German Bus Driver Saves 60 Kids Before Train Hits

The students were headed to school when the bus became stuck on the tracks.

ByABC News

September 16, 2015, 4:03 PM

The wreckage of a school bus and a train stand on a railway crossing near Buxtehude, northern Germany, Sept. 16, 2015. The train hit the bus that was stuck on the railway crossing shortly after the bus driver evacuated around 60 children from the vehicle.
Daniel Reinhardt/dpa/AP Photo

 -- A bus driver in Germany reportedly rescued 60 school children minutes before a train crashed into the vehicle today.

The 23-year-old driver, who was not identified, opened the bus doors and helped the children escape just as the front of the bus was struck on the train tracks. Road construction forced the bus driver to travel across the Buxtehude and Stade railway line north of Hamburg, a police spokesman told German publication Bild.

The bus was reportedly moving as the railroad crossing barrier came down but became stuck on the tracks. While the bus driver tried to contact the railroad operator, the train engineer could not hit the emergency brake in time and crashed into the driver’s side of the bus.

The students were taken to school on a separate bus. One train passenger suffered minor injuries. The total damage amounts to more than $300,000, according to Bild.