Students, driver escape moments before NJ school bus bursts into flames on highway

New Jersey students, bus driver unharmed in incident on Garden State Parkway

A school bus carrying students was engulfed in flames along New Jersey’s Garden State Parkway on Wednesday, fire officials said.

Firefighters responded around 2:30 p.m. to mile marker 20.8 southbound on the parkway in Cape May County and found the fire raging throughout the bus, the Seaville Fire and Rescue Company said.

All 10 students and the bus driver had already escaped the burning bus by the time firefighters and EMS arrived. No injuries were reported, according to fire officials.

Seaville firefighters worked with crews from the Marmora Volunteer Fire Company and battled the fire for about two hours before extinguishing the flames.

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school bus engulfed in flames

The school bus burst into flames along the Garden State Parkway in Cape May County on Wednesday. The driver and all the students aboard escaped unharmed. (Marmora Volunteer Fire Company )

One student told WPVI-TV that they smelled smoke and heard a loud bang before evacuating the bus.

firefighters fighting flames on school bus

Firefighters battled the flames for about two hours. (Marmora Volunteer Fire Company )

The child’s father, Kevin Capone, told the station that the situation was "very scary."

charred school bus

The charred remains of the school bus are seen along the Garden State Parkway in Cape May County. (Marmora Volunteer Fire Company )

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"It's every parent's worst nightmare because you don't know where they're sitting on the bus, you don't know where they're at," he said.

smoke from school bus

The cause of the fire was still under investigation. (Marmora Volunteer Fire Company )

The cause of the fire was unclear. 

The Cape May County Fire Marshals office and the New Jersey State Police are investigating.

Authored by Stephen Sorace via FoxNews April 18th 2024