School Bus

A blizzard was gathering its fury when the school bus started from the schoolhouse at Little Towner, Colo, one day last week. That was why Teacher Maude Moser had called off classes--to get the children home in time, safely.

Blinded by the storm's wrack on the open road, Driver Carl Miller steered into a ditch. The wheels spun, the bus stuck. There were 20 children in the bus, including Carl Miller's eight-year-old daughter Mary.

He kept the motor running. When the gasoline was nearly gone he made a fire with some of it in a can, throwing on wood from the seats and the children's books and writing tablets. He made the children pummel each other and wriggle around to keep warm. Outside it grew steadily colder, the drifts piled on up.

After 24 hours Carl Miller put Bryan Untiedt, 13, the oldest boy in the bus, in charge. "Don't let anyone go to sleep," he said, and plunged out to walk for help.

One child was already dead. Two more died presently. Their bodies slid down to the lurched rear of the bus. The rest grew hysterical, broke a window. Bryan Untiedt kept them awake, gave them all his clothing but his shirt and overalls. . . .

After 30 hours, Bryan Untiedt's father who had been tramping the roads all day, found the bus. All the children had collapsed. Father Untiedt got them to the nearest farm, only three-quarters of a mile away. In a drift three miles away was found Carl Miller's corpse. Two more of the children died that night. Bryan Untiedt's eight-year-old brother Orlo and the driver's daughter Mary. All the rest had pneumonia. Both Bryan Untiedt's arms and both his legs looked as though they must be amputated.

Survivors of the tragedy were taken to a hospital at Lamar. Although snug in their warm beds, many a frightened scream escaped them in the night as the children, fast asleep, dreamed of the terrifying hours in the bleak bus.

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