Parental Panic: A Harrowing School Bus Ordeal Leaves Halifax Mother Shaken

A Halifax mother's routine school bus commute turned into a terrifying ordeal, leaving her eight-year-old twin daughters stranded for over four and a half hours, prompting a desperate call to the police. The incident has shaken the family's trust in the school's transportation system, raising concerns about communication breakdowns and the need for improved safety protocols.

Ensuring the Safe Passage of Our Children: A Paramount Responsibility

A Routine Commute Turns Nightmarish

Chloe Daigle's children attend École Mer et Monde in Halifax's south end, with a typical bus arrival time of around 3:05 p.m. AT. However, on a fateful Monday, Daigle's routine was disrupted when she received an email informing her that the bus would be 25 minutes late. Soon after, a voicemail message indicated the delay would exceed an hour. As the minutes ticked by, Daigle's concern grew, and by 4 p.m., with the bus still nowhere in sight, she began to panic.

A Desperate Search and a Harrowing Wait

Daigle's attempts to reach the bus company, Transco, and the school proved futile, leaving her with no information about her daughters' whereabouts. Driven by a mother's instinct, she called the police at 6:20 p.m., only to learn that she was not the first concerned parent to report the missing bus. As the search intensified, some parents from the children's class took matters into their own hands, setting out to locate the elusive vehicle.

A Reunion Tinged with Relief and Concern

After a nerve-wracking wait, Daigle's daughters were finally found, safe but shaken, around 7:40 p.m. – over four and a half hours after their scheduled arrival time. Daigle's reunion with her girls was bittersweet, as she learned that the original bus driver had become lost, necessitating the dispatch of a replacement driver. The ordeal had taken a toll on the children, with one of Daigle's daughters reporting that she had been crying because she needed to use the restroom but was not allowed off the bus.

Unanswered Questions and Broken Trust

Daigle expressed her outrage at the lack of communication from both Transco and École Mer et Monde during the crisis, calling the situation "unacceptable" and "unbelievable." She emphasized that she had to rely on the police to locate her children, a scenario that should never have unfolded. The Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP), Nova Scotia's Francophone school board, acknowledged the incident and issued an apology, promising to review communication protocols and work with Transco to prevent such occurrences in the future.

A Shaken Confidence and a Shift in Priorities

The harrowing experience has left Daigle deeply shaken, and she has decided to drive her daughters to school on the following day, stating that she can no longer rely on the bus service. The incident has not only eroded her trust in the transportation system but has also raised broader concerns about the safety and well-being of students entrusted to the care of school authorities.