A Michigan schoolboy, who saved classmates by getting behind the wheel of their school bus when the driver passed out, credited the heroic act for not being distracted by a cellphone.
Dillon Reeves, 13, realized that the woman driving the bus taking him and his classmates from Carter Middle School to Warren had passed out.
He quickly sprang into action, grabbing the steering wheel and pumping the brakes, managing to guide the bus to a stop away from traffic while telling his frightened classmates to call 911.
Steve, the seventh grader’s father told CBS: ‘What else are you going to do when you don’t have a phone? You’re going to look at people, you’re going to notice things.
“You’re going to look out the window. It’s a very powerful lesson, perhaps a world-changing kind of lesson.
The schoolboy also spoke out for the first time since the April 26 incident, telling the programme: “I just knew what to do at the time.” The bus was veering off the road.
The moment heroic Dillon Reeves said school bus control after driver passed out
Reeves and 66 other students were home from Carter Middle School when the heroic teenager sprang into action
Steve told a press conference after the event that he and his wife, Ireta, were “very, very proud” of their son, “he is very observant of his surroundings”.
Ireta added on Facebook: “Jesus had everything to do with the bravery and quick action Dillon showed today.”
“For Dillon, it’s just another day. He has no idea how many people are so proud of him today,” she wrote.
Classmates who were inside the vehicle during the spooky episode told CBS how they were distracted by their electronic devices when Dillon had already taken control of the situation.
“I had my AirPods in it,” one student explained.
“I was watching on my phone,” said another, with a classmate adding, “I was on my phone playing a little game.”
Their son’s efforts gave his parents yet another reason not to give Dillon a cellphone.
It may seem unfair to some teenagers, but Dillon just shrugged and said, “Never mind. My parents are old school.
Footage of Dillon’s brave actions was captured by the security camera of the bus returning the children from Carter Middle School to Warren, Michigan.
Dillon’s proud parents Steve and Ireta Reeves say his efforts are more of a reason to deny him a cellphone
Proud parents Steve and Ireta Reeves have described how Dillon is ‘very attentive to his surroundings’
In a green hoodie and jeans, Dillon rushes to the wheel and looks for the break after noticing the driver is unconscious.
He managed to park the bus on Masonic Boulevard and told his friends, who can be heard screaming on the recording, to call 911.
The bus driver, who had only been on the job since July 2022 and has yet to be named, was taken to a local hospital for an unspecified medical condition.
No passenger was injured.
Warren Police Department Commissioner Dwyer praised Dillon for his actions
Dillon quickly sprang into action, guiding the bus to a stop away from traffic on the side of the road
Dillon was praised by his school’s superintendent for his ‘extraordinary act of courage’
Robert Livernois, superintendent of Warren Consolidated School, said: ‘He got up, assessed the situation and saw that the driver had passed out. It was an act of extraordinary courage.
Adding: “He jumped out of his seat, threw his backpack, ran forward and grabbed the steering wheel and stopped the bus.”
Commissioner Dwyer of the Warren Police Department also praised Dillon for his actions, inviting him to the police station accompanied by his proud parents.
Carter Middle School has been contacted for comment.
