Pensacola social media star, 'Mr. Bus Driver,' helps save injured woman from traffic
The awards keep piling up for Pensacola's viral social media video star, Cordarius Jones, known as "Mr. Bus Driver."
Last month, he won the district's Stellar Employee of the Month award for April. This week, the district named Jones its Stellar Employee of the Year after he used his school bus lights and STOP sign to shield a woman found lying in a roadway, cautioning other drivers and diverting traffic around where she had collapsed.
"Mr. Jones, we are extremely proud of you," said Escambia County Superintendent Tim Smith, moments before he handed Jones a plaque commemorating his award at a Tuesday night school board meeting.
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The incident Jones was recognized for occurred in late April. He was transporting students to Warrington Middle School at about 9 a.m. April 29 when he noticed traffic on Old Corry Field Road was unusually heavy.
"So, I'm thinking maybe a car is trying to turn or something," Jones recalled. "Me being in a school bus, I'm looking over all the other vehicles."
As he inched closer, he saw a man and a woman dragging something in the street. At first, he thought it might be a broken bicycle. But it wasn't.
The man and woman were attempting to move another woman, who appeared to be unconscious, out of the roadway.
"When I noticed it was a young lady and all the other cars in front of me were going around, I immediately radioed into my dispatch ... and let them know that I had an emergency," Jones said.
Once he had relayed the situation to dispatch, Jones turned on his bus lights.
"I turned on my amber lights to let traffic ahead of me know, like, 'Hey, use caution when coming up here,'" he remembered.
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But people around him were still driving erratically as they tried to maneuver past the scene.
"So I decided to activate the stop arms," he said. "Once I got everybody to realize the hazard and the young lady had been taken off the road, it wasn't no second thought or anything."
Jones pulled his bus over, told his assistant bus driver to watch over the children, grabbed his first aid kit and put on a pair of plastic gloves.
He used the kit to clean blood off the young woman and sterilize her wounds as best he could until EMS arrived.
Another bus driver who was also transporting students to Warrington Middle School stopped to check on Jones.
"They didn't waste any time. They stopped, asked if I needed any assistance, and I just let them know, 'Hey, if you could just take my kids to Warrington, I want to stay here with her until first responders get here.' And once they got there, they took over."
Florida Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. Jason King confirmed law enforcement was alerted to the situation. The call came into the FHP as "white vehicle versus a female," King said.
Once first responders arrived at the scene, the woman ultimately refused law enforcement and emergency medical assistance, and King said "There was no supporting evidence to lead to a crash investigation."
"But the great news is that this bus driver was there to help and comfort her in her time of need," King said. "This is a person who we trust each and every day with our most precious cargo, and on top of that, he went above and beyond to bring this woman some comfort. It is obvious that he went above and beyond."
Who is 'Mr. Bus Driver?'
Richard Lopez, the Area 23 school bus route manager for the district and Jones' direct supervisor, described the tremendous pride he feels for his employee in an interview after Jones was named Stellar Employee of the Year.
"This is the first time for someone in transportation to get this high of an award in a long time," Lopez said. "When he first started with the school district, he started in my old area. When I moved to a new one, he followed me. He's got loyalty. He's good with the kids. He's good with all his peers. He is good with all of the managers. Like I said, I couldn't be more proud."
Jones started as an Escambia County school bus driver four years ago. The decision to hire with the district dramatically altered his worldview for the better.
"Seeing those smiling faces in the morning is something I didn't know I needed at the time," he told the News Journal after winning his first award last month.
Every day, Jones picks up students in the morning, takes them to school and drives them home in the afternoon. In between, the 29-year-old makes videos about life as a bus driver that have been seen by millions on social media.
One of his TikTok videos alone amassed 2.9 million views.
Jones has previously said he always tries to go above and beyond the basic duties his job requires. The interior of his bus is decorated with pictures and inspirational quotes, and Jones always addresses his riders by their names, which he memorizes when assigned a new route.
Discussing what it means to be recognized for his efforts, Jones said, "It honestly leaves me speechless. It's amazing that I get up every day and I just do my job, and the fact that I am just getting recognized for just doing my job. To me, I'm going to send it as a symbol to my students. By going the extra mile, getting out of your comfort zone and doing whatever you can, you can achieve so much, and then even so much more."
Colin Warren-Hicks can be reached at colinwarrenhicks@pnj.com or 850-435-8680.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: 'Mr. Bus Driver,' a Pensacola social media star, helps save hurt woman
