Michigan 7th grader hailed as hero for parking bus after driver passed out

Michigan middle schooler Dillon Reeves sprang into action when his school bus driver suddenly fell unconscious behind the wheel, ordering his fellow passengers to call for help while he brought the vehicle to a safe stop.

Reeves, a student at Lois E. Carter Middle School in Warren, did not hesitate to grab the steering wheel and the bus’ brake when the driver suffered a medical episode during their commute home Wednesday afternoon. Warren Consolidated Schools Superintendent Robert D. Livernois described it as “an extraordinary act of courage and maturity” during a news conference on Thursday.

“I could not be prouder of his efforts,” he added. “The Warren Police and Fire Departments responded very quickly, tended to the driver, and the students were safely loaded onto a different bus to make their way home.”

In video footage of the incident obtained by ABC News, the bus driver, who was not identified, can be seen fanning her face with her cap before calling for assistance over her radio.

“I feel very dizzy and I have to pull over,” she says, just seconds before passing out.

Dillon can then be seen entering the frame and guiding the bus away from oncoming traffic.

Livernois said the driver followed protocol by alerting ‘”home base,” adding that the “quick-thinking” actions of Reeves “made all the difference.”

“I don’t know that it could have gone any better,” he said, noting that two good Samaritans helped kids out the back door of the bus. “When you have an anchor like Dillon taking care of business on the bus, it really and truly was a good day for us.”