The weather made for a stressful afternoon in Wausa as over half of the school including the entire elementary was out of town.  The Elementary took three busses and a van to attend a play in Vermillion along with many other area schools.  The schedule called for lunch after the play and also a visit to the museum.  That schedule was cut short as the weather moved in much quicker than forecasted. 

During the white out conditions the bus caravan traveled together with another area school Bloomfield.  Missed turns due to the conditions made for a very interesting trip home.  One bus with the Kindergarten and First graders became stuck only 5 miles from Wausa.  The other two busses and van made it back to Wausa safely.  At around 4:00 PM and with the assistance of area residents the third bus made it safe and sound to Wausa.

The High School students that attended the Knox County Government Day in Center also had adventurous trip home as both vans had become stuck near Wausa.  Fortunately, a bus from the elementary trip came by and was able to pick up the students from the first van.  The students from the second van were picked up by area residents and returned to the school safe and sound.

Here were some comments from the elementary students that attended the field trip yesterday:

Carson, Kindergarten:  “It was a lot of fun, but we got stuck in the ditch when we were coming back.  I really didn’t know we went into the ditch until we were stopped for a long time.  Someone had to come and clear the roads so we could get out.  I wasn’t scared at all because I knew the bus driver and my teacher would get me home safe.”

Kaitlyn, 1st Grade:  “The play was the best part of the field trip.  My favorite character was the squirrel.  The bus trip home was bad because we got stuck in the snow.”

Ruth, 2nd Grade: “We had to quit our game because the girl I was next to was scared about crashing the bus.  I wasn’t scared.  The play was really good, the caterpillar was my favorite.  We didn’t get to go to the museum because of the weather.  I hope that we get to go again so everyone can see the museum.  We made a fort out of our coats on the bus.  We listened to my friends MP3 player.  We had a chalk board we played with also.”

Allison, 3rd Grade: “It was fun on the way to Vermillion but the ride home was kinda scary.  It made it really scary when we couldn’t see anything because of the snow.  When we got home we got to have a sleep over with Mary and Ruth because their Mom got stuck at work.  The play was good.  My favorite character was the caterpillar because had a weird voice.  It took forever to get home.”

Mary, 4th Grade: “When we got to the play, a lot of people were there. Especially some people that I knew in different towns.  My favorite character was the caterpillar because he  was soooo fat.  It was scary when the bus got stuck. Everyone was screaming their hearts out. It was freaky. Luckily, the teachers got brave enough and stood outside and showed the right directions. It took forever to get home because of the blizzard. But, we made it!”

Ryan, 5th Grade: “The best part of the day was the excitement from the blizzard.  The ride was insane but we got used to it because we trusted our bus driver Dale.  The play was good and favorite character was the caterpillar.” 

Brice, 5th Grade: “When Dale’s Bus got stuck I wasn’t scared because I knew someone would help us get unstuck.  It didn’t seem like it was too long to get to Vermillion but it took a long time to get back home.”

As a parent of three children (one on each bus) I would like to personally thank the drivers, teachers and staff who made sure that my children and your children returned home safely.  Thank you so much for your dedication and experience.

Category: News