Bus in CONEWANGO, N.Y. Hit by Stray Bullet

Just two short days after hunting started, a School bus with 35 students still aboard was hit by a stray bullet. The incident occurred on November 22 at 7:30 am. The round entered above the door and lodged itself between the driver's seat and the first row on the other side of the bus.
Narrowly missing the driver and a seated student.

The Man who shot the gun, one 59 year old William Squire, was hunting from his deer stand. He saw a buck, took aim with his 30.06 riffle, fired...and missed. Causing the bullet to travel roughly 500 yards before crossing state route 241 and connecting with the school bus. William turned himself in and is now facing charges of reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, and was cited for a DEC violation of firing across a highway.

I know that when you see that big ten pointer buck your first reaction, (if not yelling "Do you see him!") is to shoot. I'd like to suggest a rearrangement of your reactions and change the first one to thinking about what your going to hit if you miss him. Then proceed with the yelling, and gun firing when you know it's safe.

Thank You,
Haleigh

Happy Thanksgiving!

I Know you are all excited to gather your families and race to Grandma's table, but I would just like to remind you that it's winter and the roads are bound to be covered in snow. Remember to take your time if you are leaving home; I'm sure that if you give a Grandma a call she'll make Grandpa wait to carve.

Here are some tips for driving in snow and ice.

• Decrease your speed and leave yourself plenty of room to stop.


• Brake gently to avoid skidding. If your wheels start to lock up, ease off the brake.


• Turn on your lights to increase your visibility to other motorists.


• Keep your lights and windshield clean.


• Use low gears to keep traction, especially on hills.


• Don't use cruise control or overdrive on icy roads.


• Don't assume your vehicle can handle all conditions. Even four-wheel and front-wheel drive vehicles can encounter trouble on winter roads.

Just keep these simple tips in mind whenever you have to drive in less then optimal conditions. Remember, even though Mr. Turkey doesn't seem to mind the snowy weather, you should.

Thank You,

Haleigh

You Know it's Deer Season When...

On November 10th, a deer crashed into a Licking Valley school bus. This happened when the car in front of the bus hit the deer, catapulting it throught the windsheild of the bus, where it landed seven seats back. The school bus has received serious damage, such as the seats being bent. Fortunately the school bus driver only received minor injuries and there were no students on board.

Please take this incident as a reminder to keep an eye out for deer on or along the road. If you would like to read in more detail about this story, click on the link attached to this post's title.

Thank You,
Haleigh

We're Walking Fit!

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We are starting a new get fit program here at Hoglund Transportation! This one is called Walk Fit. The goal is to take at least 10,000 steps a day, and 35 people are now participating!

Since we had such good success with our Driven Driver Challenge, we decided to give it another go. Just like with our other program, we have journals to record any and all exercise. We rent a pedometer to help track our steps and make sure everything is fair.

Other than walking, we have a converter on our progress site so we can keep track of our other activities as well. We will be doing this program for eight months. With so many people participating I cannot wait to see the outcome! Time to get walking so we can get fit!

Thank You,
Haleigh

Costumes and Candy!

Houglund Transportation would like to wish everyone a Happy (if not haunted) Halloween!!

Here are some safety tips for that night and the days of sugary goodness that follow!

• Children should always go out trick-or-treating accompanied by a responsible adult.




• Some towns set a curfew for trick-or-treating which makes it easier for people to know when they can expect no more visitors.




• Plan a safe route so parents know where their older kids will be at all times. Set a time for their return home. Make sure that they have a cell phone.




• Instruct your children not to eat any treats until they bring them home to be examined by you. This way you can check for any problem candy and get the pick of the best stuff!




• Instruct your child to never go into the home of a stranger or get into their car.




• Make sure your child carries a flashlight, glow stick or has reflective tape on their costume to make them more visible to cars.




• Let them know that they should stay together as a group if going out to Trick-or-Treating without an adult.
  

Also this is a reminder to not eat or hand out candy on the school bus. It can be dangerous and distracting! We look forward to seeing everyone in costumes this Monday! If you are interested in more Halloween safety tips or facts, click on the title and follow the link.

Thank You,
Haleigh

All In A Days Work!

In Angole, New York, Lori saved the lives of students just by being aware.

At a routine drop-off, she stopped, checked her surroundings, and after making sure it was safe she opened her door to let the students off. Just before the students left the bus, Lori noticed an oncoming vehicle and pulled her door closed. When the doors shut, an out of control vehicle skidded sideways in front of the door and across three lawns.

Parents who witnessed it were able to give the police a description of the car and a partial license plate. No news on weather or not the vehicle has been located as of yet.

Lori was presented with a certificate for her actions as well as flowers. She later said,
"It was all in a day's work, and I am glad I could be of service."

Well Lori, it was a good call and I'm very impressed! Such a good example on how important it is to always be aware of your surroundings. If you want to learn more about it, click the link connected to the title.

Thank You,
Haleigh

National Walk to School Day!

The above picture shows Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Walking to School.

National Walk to School Day was held on October 5Th this year and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez Joined students on their walks!

This event has a completely positive effect on not only the students but also on the environment! For the students, it helps wake up their minds and prepare them for the school day, while giving them a way to be active and healthy. For the environment, it cuts back on general emissions and traffic congestion.

Did you know that walking and/or biking to school is second place (right behind riding the big yellow bus) in safest way to get to or from school? It is kind of surprising to think of it that way since so many kids either drive themselves or are dropped off by a parent. All those extra vehicles, leads to traffic and people rushing to get to school on time thus creating more opportunities for accident to happen.

School buses are by far the safest way for students to go to school, but when the next National Walk to School Day rolls around...I hope to see many more people on the sidewalk!

Thank You,
Haleigh

Hoglund's Heros Issue 1!!!!

This is a copy of the very first issue of Hoglund's Heros!!!

Hoglund's Heros is a weekly newsletter made by Rachel and it incorporates all things happening in and around Hoglund! There is a calendar section, an employee assignment section, rule of the week and weekly meetings! I know I am a little biased on this, but my favorite part is the exerpt about our blog!

Unfortunately we will only be posting these little pictures of the issues and you will not be able to read the whole thing. The good news is that I will be pulling out the highlights for you!

For this weeks meeting we discussed our idling policy, discipline, pre-trips, our communication forms and how they work, and our time and mileage reports! Not a bad way to kick off our first meeting of the year!

Thank You,
Haleigh

New Kjellberg West Stop!!

To all families who reside within Kjellbergs West: we have changed the bus stop. The new stop is located on the driveway to the east of the office. All students are required to be at the bus stop before the bus arrives! Bikes are to be left against the fence, and parents need to park a safe distance away.

In the transportation industry it is irresponsible to place a stop in the same place just because it has been there for years. New factors can arise at the bus stop, making it unsafe or unreasonable to leave it where it was. Seeing as there have been multiple incidents at the old stop, and adding in other factors, the change was the best choice we could make for everyone.

During drop-off in the afternoon all student are required to stay at the bus stop until the bus has left. That means not going to the bikes, or a parent's car until the bus has left the street. This is all for the child's safety.

The above diagram shows the Kjellbergs stop, which is marked with a red X. At the stop there are yellow lines painted on the road, marking where students are expected to wait for the bus.

Thank You,
Haleigh

Crashes on the decline?

From California and Oregon all the way over to Ohio, school bus accidents are decreasing!

In California we are seeing a 10% decrease in crashes, going from 2,091 to 1,878 school bus crashes. Only five of the crashes resulted in fatalities, none of which were passengers on board the buses. In the same year, school bus activity increased by 5%. Isn't it just amazing how the bus accidents go down as their activity goes up?!

In Oregon, Salem-Keizer’s transportation has reduced their accidents by an overwhelming 25%! This is accredited to their convincing the school to change bell times. All so that the bus while not be involed with as much day to day traffic as it was before.

In Ohio there was also a 25% drop in accidents! They attribute this drop to having better driver training and management practices. Their state director mentions them having summer training indepth perception as a main goal to improve upon for future years!

I would like to congratulate all three states in successfully decreasing their accidents and making school buses even safer!

Thank You,
Haleigh