Savannah Chatham Public School System addresses Coastal Middle bus incident

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - The Savannah-Chatham County Public School System has issued a statement following an incident that occurred on August 27, 2025, involving a school bus serving students from Coastal Middle School.

A video recording of the incident, which has circulated among parents and social media, captured the driver telling a student, “I will mess you up,” and accusing the child of threatening to hit her.

The driver then asks the student for his name, the back-and-forth exchange continues and she finally says she’s taking the kids back to school.

The video also shows the student making a phone call and ends with the bus stopped and surrounded by several Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools police vehicles.

Watch the video here:

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According to the district, several students engaged in “ongoing misconduct” while riding their assigned bus.

Despite the driver’s attempts to manage the situation, disruptive behavior continued throughout the route.

At one point, a parent who became aware of the events decided to follow the bus and contacted authorities.

The driver also requested police assistance. Students eventually exited the bus at an unintended stop.

While school officials stated that video footage showed no evidence of unsafe driving, they acknowledged that the driver’s response “did not fully meet our professional standards.”

As a result, the district confirmed that the driver will no longer be assigned to Coastal Middle School routes and that “appropriate disciplinary actions have been taken.”

The district emphasized that the safety of students remains its top priority and said it is committed to upholding professional expectations for all staff.

See the full statement here:

On August 27, 2025, several students engaged in ongoing misconduct while riding their assigned bus serving Coastal Middle School. Despite the driver’s efforts to manage the situation, the disruptive student behavior continued throughout the route.  A parent who became aware of the disruptive circumstances decided to follow the bus and contacted authorities, and the driver subsequently requested police assistance as well.  Students exited the bus at an unintended stop.

While video footage does not show any evidence of unsafe driving, the driver’s response to the challenging circumstances did not fully meet our professional standards. As a result, the driver will no longer be assigned to Coastal Middle School routes and appropriate disciplinary actions have been taken. 

Savannah-Chatham County Public School System