A Bibb County school bus driver is being praised for his quick-thinking by steering a bus full of students to safety at a local fire station during a tornado warning, reported 13wmaz.

Alfonso Ponder, who drives for Bibb County Schools, told local news reporters that he began his March 12 route around 5:45 a.m. and expected a routine morning before conditions quickly deteriorated.

“Everything was pretty, pretty good until about 6:30 [a.m.] maybe,” Ponder said via the article. “[Then] I got an alert to my phone saying we was up on a tornado warning and take shelter. Dispatch had told us to take shelter also.”

With about 15 students on board headed to Howard High School, Ponder was driving near a fire station when the alert came through and winds intensified. He decided to pull into the station.

“I had about 15 kids on the bus at the time, and I had decided to pull up because the wind was blowing so hard,” he told reporters. “When I pulled up, the firefighter welcomed me along with 15 kids in for safety.”

Ponder said he had been monitoring the worsening weather and had already identified the fire station as the safest nearby option.

“The weather was kind of getting bad,” he said. “So, I already had to figure out, OK, if they tell us shelter in place, I was gonna try to make it to the fire station, because that’s about the safest place around I can make it.”

Students Kept Safe as Tornado Warning Passes

Firefighters brought Ponder and the students inside, where they remained for about 20 to 25 minutes until the tornado warning expired, and it was safe to continue the route.

The storm frightened many of the students, Ponder stated. “Most of them [were] telling me, ‘Can you please get me back to the house?’” he said. “I said, ‘No, I cannot. I got to get y’all to safety.’ And that’s the only thing was on my mind at the time, getting the kids’ safety, my safety.”

Ponder, who has been driving school buses for about three years, said the experience was his first encounter with a tornado warning while on the job. Afterward, several parents contacted him to express gratitude for protecting their children.

Capt. Keith Carter said his crew at Bibb County Fire Station 3 acted immediately when the bus arrived. “My 25 years, that was my first school bus pulling to the station,” Carter said. “I knew something was wrong. We assisted them getting off the bus, coming into the station. Mr. Ponder; he did follow his protocol. So, he came to the nearest, safest place. We wake up every day wanting to help different people.”

Ponder said he remains thankful that everyone made it through the storm unharmed.

“I want to give a special thanks to the Bibb County Fire Department for allowing me and the kids to get to safety,” he said. “I’m glad all the kids and my coworkers, everybody, was safe.”

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