Flash Floods 2
Flash Floods 2 : Heavy rains from thunderstorms had been occurring all day in the Virginia foothills and the National Weather Service issued a Flash Flood Watch around noon. The rain had let up by the time the children loaded the buses at Hillboro Elementary School. With a full load of children, Fred started the bus and pulled out. Fred had been driving this route for over five years and had never encountered any flood problems. He didn't expect any today. About halfway through his route, he turned onto Dark Hollow Road. The road crosses a small stream and this afternoon, the stream was out of its banks and flowing across the road. Fred slowed the bus as he approached the water. If he turned around, it would take him an extra hour to get the remaining children home. The water looked less than a foot deep. Certainly, the bus could safely cross that. He decided to move forward. The bus moved easily through the water, but as it approached the bridge, the front tires fell into a hole. With the water over the road, Fred hadn't seen that the pavement had been undermined. He attempted to back out, but the bus wouldn't budge. What was worse, the water was continuing to rise and was now more than a foot and a half above the road! Fred knew he better act fast. There was still eleven children on the bus. About fifty yards away was higher ground, a hillside. They would head there. The current was picking up. He would have to carry the smaller ones. His third and last trip from the bus to the hill was a hard one. In just ten minutes, the water had risen to waist deep and he could barely keep his footing. Grabbing onto to trees and bushes along the way, he pulled himself and the last child to the hillside and out of the water. He was exhausted. He wouldn't have made it if he had to carry one more. As he turned around to look back at the bus, the bus overturned and washed into the raging waters. Floods occur every year in Maryland and Virginia. Nationally, it is the number one weatherrelated killer averaging 150 deaths per year. Half of these deaths occur in automobiles. NEVER ENTER FLOODED WATERS! If caught in rising water, abandon your vehicle immediately and move to higher ground. Fred and the children were lucky. He acted quickly and got them to safety, but he never should have attempted to cross the flooded area to begin with
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