BREWSTER – Kim Parrottino cried when thanking her son’s school bus driver for saving his life and the lives of two other children when a motorist sped past an unloading school bus on Route 22 in Southeast.
The incident happened last October when Elke Reimann, a veteran bus driver of 18 years, noticed the speeding car passing the bus and grabbed the nine- and ten-year-olds before they stepped into the road avoiding a tragedy of monumental proportions.
On Wednesday, Parrottino and another parent, Mayra Leiva, visited the Brewster School District’s Transportation Depot and presented their savior with a dozen yellow roses.
Brewster School District Transportation Director Mary Smith credited Reimann’s “concentration and speedy reaction” for preventing the children from exiting the bus. Elke’s undivided attention averted a calamity. Drivers must always be prepared to communicate with students at every moment. In this case Elke’s attention to her mirrors enabled her to communicate quickly with her students.”
The incident took place on Route 22 near the Southeast-Patterson town line when the bus stopped to deliver three C.V. Starr Intermediate School children to their families.
Immediately after the incident, Smith contacted authorities, but the perpetrator who passed the stopped bus on the right side driving across a lawn and private driveway instead of obeying the law and stopping, escaped.
Parrottino, who was waiting for her 10-year-old daughter at the bus stop, said following the brush with death “I fell to my knees and was so thankful that Elke prevented our children from stepping off the bus. The woman is an angel. I, like the parents of the other two children can never, ever thank you enough for saving our children’s lives. I am so happy we have you on our team. We want you to drive our children until they graduate from Brewster High School,” she said during a recognition ceremony at the school’s Transportation Depot.
Reimann was humbled by the accolades. “I didn’t do anything differently from what another driver would have done. A driver hears about situations like this but you never expect it will happen to you. My good reflexes saved the day!”
Reimann might be modest about the incident but Smith said she sings her praises every day: “Elke Reimann is one of Brewster’s best.”
