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California Bus Operators to the Rescue
Bus operators in San Jose and Riverside, CA, recently came to the rescue when children went missing in their service areas. The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) in San Jose honored bus operator Tim Watson for his recent actions to thwart the kidnapping of a 3-year-old boy in Milpitas, CA.
According to VTA, the young boy inadvertently wandered away from his mother in the Milpitas Public Library and was kidnapped. After receiving word of the incident through the agency’s emergency notification system, Watson recognized the suspect and the child as they boarded his bus.
Watson confirmed the child’s identity, based on descriptions given in the emergency alert, by devising a plan that allowed him to search the bus further and get a better look at the young child and the alleged suspect. Once confirmed, he immediately called VTA dispatch for further instructions.
The driver stalled for time until police could arrive at his destination, the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District’s Fremont Station, where they arrested the suspect and rescued the child.
Watson joined VTA as an operator trainee last year and became a full-time operator in January. Earlier he was a driver for AC Transit in Oakland.
At the ceremonies honoring Watson, VTA also recognized its Operations Control Center employees and security staff, members of the Milpitas and Fremont police departments and the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office. Watson also threw out the first pitch at a San Jose Giants minor league baseball game.
In Riverside, CA, another bus driver, Keith Quamina of the Riverside Transit Agency, helped reunite a 15-year-old San Jacinto boy with his mother.
The teenager, who has disabilities, wandered away after school; when night fell, the San Jacinto Unified School District sent out a notification. Quamina, a former deputy sheriff, watched for the boy as he drove his route and saw him crossing the street, five miles from the school, as Quamina returned to the bus yard after his shift.
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