Teachers Save Bus Full Of Students
CUOMO: Let's go to the couch. Walk. Couch activities.</s>MARQUEZ: I'm getting into it.</s>CUOMO: To the couch, I'm ready. Two teachers from South Carolina are being called heroes because they are. Why? They saved a bus full of children. They lept into action after the driver became disoriented. They have to take the wheel, stopped the bus from rolling over after veering into a ditch. We're happy to welcome fourth grade teacher, Amy Ryan and sign language expert and interpreter, Lee Morris. Thank you for being here with us on NEW DAY. All right, so first, help us understand what happened here. You're in the bus as you saw it, how did you get into this situation?</s>LEE MORRIS, SIGN LANGUAGE EXPERT: Well, it was kind of surprising. You can see from the video I was about to sit back and get a little shut eye. That's when I heard the screaming, the stop -- stop sign being yelled. I looked up and noticed we were about to roll through that intersection without stopping. And the bus driver, he did make a little bit of a turn p. That put us through the intersection to the ditch and as we came back out that's when I was able to jump up and grab the wheel to help out.</s>CUOMO: So what's your best sense about why you blew through the stop sign and wound up in this situation? You know, we use the word disoriented? Is that what you were able to figure out, Amy, from the driver or he's just blow through the stop sign? What do you think happened?</s>AMY RYAN, FOURTH GRADE TEACHER: We're not sure exactly even at this moment what happened to the bus driver. I do remember we were all yelling stop, stop, stop! And it didn't appear that he even put the brakes on at all. So I can't even speculate what happened. But it didn't appear that he -- he didn't say anything, so disoriented, I guess, is the best word to describe what happened.</s>BOLDUAN: So Lee grabs the steering wheel and then you jump into action. What's going through your mind because you basically it looks like jump over him to then hit the brakes in order to help the bus stop? What do you remember thinking when this is all happening?</s>RYAN: Honestly, I remember thinking I have seen this on the news. I cannot believe this is -- I'm in this situation, this is happening to me. At that moment I don't think I was fearful. I was very scared when we went through the stop sign. I was very scared when we -- when it felt like we were going to tip. At that moment, when I actually went over the bus driver to get to the brakes, I don't think I was scared at that moment. I just knew the bus had to stop.</s>MORRIS: It's one of those situations where you -- they always say you don't think about what you're doing, and we didn't. Once the bus came out of the dip we just jumped up and started acting.</s>MARQUEZ: Your reactions were so quick. Hearing the kids' voices on that video is the most disturbing, the screams. When this bus finally came to a stop, what happened in that bus?</s>RYAN: We both -- what I think is truly amazing is that there were two other teachers on the bus, Mr. Morris and myself and nobody said anything. We all just did something. Lee made calls to 911 and the police. I called the school. The other two teachers were consoling the children. So -- and once the bus came to a stop, the screams ended, the children were crying, some of them, but they were very, very calm. So it didn't -- it wasn't a chaotic situation, which we're so thankful for. It could have been, very scary. But I think the children trusts us, which I think is a big deal. That's sort of what I keep thinking about is how much trust they put in us.</s>CUOMO: They certainly do now. We're dealing with a tender age, fourth graders, 9-year-old kids basically. You know, so fragile still, Amy, you've got some serious rise, the way you catapulted up over that driver, do you think that was adrenaline or do you think you have track star background or something like that that allowed you to do that?</s>RYAN: I run a little bit but I don't think that had anything to do with it. I think I just wanted it stopped.</s>CUOMO: I mean, that was amazing. So many thankful families for you guys now, amazing presents, those families, coming this Christmas and your own as well because you're going to make it home.</s>BOLDUAN: A parent even riding behind the bus who said, the way she described it, is she felt so powerless seeing it teetering on the point where it could tip over. I can only imagine how thankful they are for you guys this year.</s>CUOMO: Lee, Amy, thank you for stepping up and being heroes. I don't care if you don't like the word, that's what it is.</s>RYAN: Thank you.</s>CUOMO: All the best of the holidays to you and your families.</s>RYAN: You, as well.</s>BOLDUAN: Amazing when you see that video.</s>CUOMO: Most do nothing --</s>BOLDUAN: I know.</s>CUOMO: -- in a situation like that - shocked.</s>MARQUEZ: Scared.</s>CUOMO: Shocked.</s>MARQUEZ: Scared. Sure, you're scared and not sure what's going on. For them to jump on that driver, he even got out of the seat.</s>CUOMO: Extraordinary to do anything, moving the driver, getting around, and her with that Carl Lewis move there. Amazing.</s>BOLDUAN: Good to highlight them, too. Coming up next on NEW DAY, we now know his fate. The American held in prison in the United Arab Emirates for posting a joke video online. He gets a one-year sentence. His brother will be joining us live to tell us what is next in their fight to bring their brother back.</s>CUOMO: And a dad blasted online after this. It's him and his 4-year- old. He's having him run alongside his car, being tough and faster for football. It's getting called parent abuse. People are all over them, death threats, controversy, nontroversy. We'll talk about it coming up.