HOUSTON — One parent is concerned after a bus for his child’s private school caught fire. The bus caught fire Thursday afternoon off of the West Grand Parkway in the Richmond area. The bus is contracted to serve the British International School of Houston.
The school responded Friday and said the kids onboard were safely evacuated. The concrete in the Target parking lot was scorched where the bus pulled over. Cellphone video of the fire made rounds in a parent group chat on Thursday.
“This was a big shock. This transport ferries our kids to school right, so that was a shocker for us,” one parent told KHOU 11.
The parent, who didn't want to be identified, said he’s concerned not just because of the fire, but also over more than a year of various issues have continued.
“[One year ago] that’s when things started going south," the parent said. "They started changing bus drivers, started maintenance issues, some cases where the bus driver forgot the stop and took the kids to some other town altogether.”
The British International School of Houston sent the following statement:
The safety and security of students is paramount, and the children onboard were quickly and safely evacuated. We are treating this matter very seriously and are in close contact with the bus provider, and the fire marshal who is investigating the incident.
According to the school’s website, they contract their bus services with A Ambassador. The company’s CEO said there were no mechanical issues with the bus. They said the bus began smoking and the driver pulled over before the flames spread.
Ambassador Limousine & Transportation also sent KHOU 11 a statement.
Safety of customers, drivers, and the general public is of paramount concern to Ambassador Transportation. Yesterday, one of our buses carrying 10 children got caught on fire. The driver noticed smoke coming from the left side of the minibus. The driver followed all safety procedures and pulled to a safe spot, evacuated the children, and got them away from the bus and out of any harm’s way. Moments later a fire started on the side of the bus. The fire department arrived at the scene and immediately put out the fire. The school management also arrived at the location shortly after the fire department to ensure safety of the kids. We are waiting on the Fire Marshal investigation report. Our driver handled the situation professionally and safely. No one was hurt or injured including the driver. This was an unfortunate incident but our teams are doing everything to avoid such situation(s) and looking at all possible causes of the fire.
“Kudos to the bus driver,' the parent said. "She did an excellent job making sure the kids were out of harm's way."
The Fort Bend County Fire Marshal is investigating the fire.