GLENDALE, Wis. (NewsNation) — A Wisconsin eighth grader took control of a school bus steering wheel to avoid a crash when he noticed the bus driver had passed out.
Acie Holland III springs into action
There were more than a dozen other students aboard the bus April 24, and Acie Holland III, 14, sprung into action as soon as he noticed the bus veering over the centerline into oncoming traffic.
Once he had control of the steering wheel, he straightened the bus out and drove it near the curb, where he then pressed on the brakes.
Acie said he got off the bus, telling the other kids to call 911 and their parents. He then sprinted home to get his grandmother, who is a registered nurse at a local hospital.
The bus driver eventually regained consciousness and profusely apologized to the students before being taken to the hospital.
An ‘April Fools’ Day’ joke
When Acie told his dad about the incident, Acie Holland Jr. said he thought it was an April Fools’ joke because they had been playing jokes on each other all month long. It wasn’t until Acie Holland Jr. talked to his mom — Acie Holland III’s grandmother — that he believed it was true.
“At that point, I was kind of in a daze — couldn’t believe it,” Acie Holland Jr. said Monday on “Morning in America.”
Acie Holland III said he was only able to execute the rescue because his father had previously taught him the basics of how to drive.
“We used to go down south, they put me on a tractor and let me drive it. We work on cars, and sometimes he lets me pull it in the driveway,” Acie Holland III said.
Acie Holland III honored with citation
The elementary school also honored Acie Holland III with a citation for his bravery.
“It’s not lost on me that this could have been a serious tragedy for our school community,” Anna Young, principal of Glen Hills Middle School, told The Washington Post. “Acie knows about cars and he has an understanding of cars that most students his age don’t. I can’t think of a student who could have been more properly placed to deal with this.”
Acie Holland III said he feels good that he did something positive because “a lot of kids don’t do a lot of positive things.”
“We were speechless,” his father said. “I was very proud of myself for what he did. That was just simply amazing.”