By CKOM News Staff

‘Like campfire flames but bigger:’ School bus catches fire in Saskatoon neighbourhood

Feb 15, 2017 | 5:54 AM

A school bus caught fire during the afternoon drive home in Saskatoon, Tuesday.

Initial reports came in shortly before 4 p.m. of a fully-involved blaze on Macdermid Crescent in the Adelaide/Churchill neighbourhood.

Fire department officials at the scene say initial observations suggest the fire started in the engine, but a cause is still being investigated.

Nine-year-old Faith Walker was getting off the bus when the blaze started.

“Before I got off the bus my friend noticed a weird smell,” she said, adding that everyone exited the back shortly after.

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“There was smoke everywhere and then the bus was on fire… It was like campfire flames, but bigger.”

She said the fire took two minutes to consume the bus.

Walker’s mother Kristina Hughes was on her way to pick up her daughter when she got the call. She arrived on the street to find the bus fully engulfed.

“As a parent it’s your worst nightmare,” she said. “To think what would have happened if they had still been on the bus when it caught fire.”

The bus driver, known as “Nels,” helped get four students off the bus to safety. Representatives from First Bus Lines declined to allow the driver to comment at the scene.

Firefighters were able to get the flames under control without damage to surrounding homes, and by 4:30 p.m. were managing a smouldering wreck.

A caller told 650 CKOM he could see a cloud of heavy smoke from the Stonebridge Walmart.

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