Stewart O’Leary was driving a bus full of high school basketball players when a metal piece flew through the windshield and struck him, a Washington school district said.
“It was instantaneous, it was violent,” O’Leary told KOMO News. “I could see the slice in the windshield.”
O’Leary had picked up the girls’ varsity team Jan. 7 from North Creek High School in Bothell, the Northshore School District’s spokesperson, Carri Campbell, told McClatchy News by email Feb. 13.
He was going south on Interstate 405 at a speed of 60 mph when something flew through the window and hit O’Leary in the chest, Campbell said.
Even though he had been injured, O’Leary had to get the bus to safety.
Coaches onboard called 911 and helped him park on the side of the highway in Bellevue, Campbell said.
Then they learned O’Leary had been struck by a foot-long piece of metal that was about an inch think, she said.
He was taken to a hospital for his injuries from the metal piece and from shattered glass.
O’Leary was later released from the hospital and went back to work the following Monday, Campbell said.
“Despite being injured, Mr. O’Leary was intent on making sure our students remained safe. He is a true hero. We are also really proud of our coaches who supported Mr. O’Leary and our student-athletes who remained calm throughout the frightening situation,” the Northshore School District said in a statement.
School officials aren’t sure what the piece of metal is from, but it looks like it came from a vehicle.
O’Leary has been a bus driver with the district for nearly 10 years.
“I kept the girls safe,” he told KOMO. “That’s what the job of a bus driver is, transporting students safely, and I did that. I’m pretty happy none of them got hurt.”
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