[George W. Bush]

I've wondered if the school bus drivers left town anyway before anyone had a chance to call them.

They waited so long to evacuate, they had little chance to get the school districts to call for the buses.

I'm not excusing it. But they waited too long to call the evacuation to expect bus drivers to show up. Still, some drivers would probably have come.

The far bigger guilt was leaving the buses in flood zones. They could have moved them to high ground to be used in evacuation after the storm.

[BurbankKarl]

A freeper emailed the school district...and they responded. They said the drivers were told to evacuate like everyone else....and they left well ahead of Sunday.

[bboop]

No, Nagin said he did not want to use the school buses. He said something like, "I want luxury Grayhounds! Get them here from all over the country." But instead, at the stamp of his little pouty foot, he got -- a levee break.

[randita]

I've wondered if the school bus drivers left town anyway before anyone had a chance to call them.

I don't think anyone expected the regular school bus drivers to assist in this emergency, but it's not rocket science to drive a bus -- they're all automatic transmission anymore. There should have been a plan in place to provide people to drive these busses in an emergency -- perhaps city employees of some type or another.

[plain talk]

They didn't need the school bus drivers. They weren't going to school. All they needed were the bus keys and some brains. For that matter police could have driven the busses which makes more sense than sending 40% of them home to areas expected to flood.

[dawn53]

They waited so long to evacuate, they had little chance to get the school districts to call for the buses.

Nobody's really asking the question, but the question that needs to be asked is, "Why did you wait so long to order an evacuation?"

By the time they ordered the evac, it was too late, and I think they knew it.

[Jotmo]

I've wondered if the school bus drivers left town anyway before anyone had a chance to call them

Bus drivers are irrelevant. Anyone who can drive a stick, can drive a school bus, and ALL city transit busses are automatic.

Any politician who would let the lack of correct paperwork on the part of the drivers hold up an evacuation should be lynched.