KTRE.com Lufkin and Nacogdoches |Nobody hurt in bus fire near Livingston

Nobody hurt in bus fire near Livingston

LIVINGSTON, TX (KTRE) - Nobody was hurt and no personal belongings were even damaged in a bus fire carrying students from Houston to Shreveport.

The charter bus, which was carrying  fifth-graders, parents and teachers from South Highlands Elementary Magnet School, was on its way back from a Houston field  trip when it apparently overheated and burst into flames at about 9:25 a.m. Thursday on Highway 59 outside of Livingston.

According to chaperone Ruth Cole, a driver following the bus saw the flames and called 911. She said all the passengers remained calm while exiting the bus.

"The driver thought it was a blown-out tire or something, but as the smoke got worse, and we're talking in a time span of two seconds, he decided it was not a blown-out tire, pulled the bus over to the side of the road and said ‘get off!'" Cole said.

Officials at Livingston High School then took in the 106 students and fed them lunch. Another charter arrived at the high school and transported the group to Shreveport around 12:30 p.m. Thursday.