BUCKHANNON — Upshur County school officials, transportation personnel, and firefighters from the Buckhannon Fire Department (BFD) gathered on October 28 at 10:00am to celebrate the donation of a retired school bus.

The out-of-service school bus will be used to provide educational training to emergency service providers in the event a school bus extrication would be necessary. The bus has fulfilled its life span based on West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) transportation guidelines and the inability to update required safety programs.

Buckhannon Fire Chief J.B. Kimble stated, “The bus donation will benefit many local departments, who will have the opportunity to participate in a training course specific to school bus extrication. The course will be held on our grounds, but open to all emergency response departments throughout the state.”

“Knowing that it can be difficult for fire departments to acquire a school bus for training, we are excited to be able to move forward with this donation. Emergency responders will enhance their training skills related to school bus extrication, which will help them understand what students need and the most appropriate way to get them out safely. These types of classes are very important, and we are proud to be able to be a part of these efforts.”, shares Upshur County Schools Transportation Director, Jodie Akers.

“I am glad we could work together to provide this educational opportunity to our firefighters. It will help us to further ensure the safety of our team, students, and community members, should we ever need to conduct a bus extrication.”, shares Kimble.

Dr. Sara Lewis-Stankus, Upshur County Schools Superintendent, states, “This is another example of Upshur County working together to increase the safety and security of our students and community.”