Heros

[darrels joy]

4 Men Rush Into Burning Bus To Save Students

Rescuer Says He's Not Afraid To Die


POSTED: 6:10 am EDT September 24, 2008
UPDATED: 8:27 am EDT September 24, 2008


CITRA, Fla. -- Four men made some heroic rescues when a Marion County school bus was engulfed in flames after being hit by a big rig on Tuesday.



The men jumped from their vehicles after the crash and said they just did what they had to do.

"If God would have taken me that day, it's my time to go. I'm not afraid to die. That's (why) God put us here to help our fellow man," James Horton said.


Horton was driving to Jacksonville on U.S. Highway 301, when he saw a big rig crash into the back of the bus, igniting a huge ball of fire.


"The bus was stopped. There was no reason for that semi to slam into the rear of it," Horton said.


Without hesitation, Horton said he pulled over and rushed into the burning bus. He said he didn't know what to expect.


"You couldn't tell nothing," Horton said. "You just grabbed, you felt. That gentleman over there was pulling them off and handing them to us."

Horton was one of four men who risked their lives to save the students on the bus. The men said they worked together to carry as many kids as possible to safety.


"If they wouldn't have done that, the outcome would have been even more tragic than it already is, and we really owe a great deal of debt to those men. They are heroes tonight," Marion County Fire Department spokeswoman Heather Danenhower said.


The four men said they don't want to be called heroes. They said they're normal people, who simply reacted in a time of crisis.


"I'm not a hero, just a human being, wanting to help other human beings," John Bishop said.


"I was just there. I would hope someone would do it for me," Matthew Eckenrode said.


"I don't want to be called a hero. I did what any other man who loves kids would do," Horton said.



Grief counselors will be at public schools across Marion County to help students deal with the death of one of their classmates.

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CITRA, Fla. — The Florida Highway Patrol has identified a 13-year-old girl who died in a Marion County school bus crash.

Frances M. Schee died Tuesday afternoon after a tractor-trailer rear-ended her school bus and both vehicles caught on fire.

Schee was a middle school student.

About 21 students and a driver were aboard the bus. Eight were injured — two critically — and all were taken to area hospitals.

Officials said both drivers were also taken to area hospitals with non-life threatening injuries.

The Florida Highway Patrol says charges against the driver, 30-year-old Reinaldo Gonzalez of Orlando, are pending.

The accident occurred on U.S. Highway 301 near 155th Street in Marion County.

Television shots showed the cab of the tractor-trailer had burned completely, while the back of the bus had flame damage.