The Fire on the Road
Two Farmworkers Save 20 Children from a Burning School Bus in Madera County
What began as a normal morning on September 4 quickly turned into a scene of chaos and courage in Madera County, California.
Carlos Perea Romero and Angel Zarco, two local farmworkers, were driving near a rural intersection when they noticed smoke billowing from a Madera Unified school bus. Inside were more than 20 children on their way to school.
Without hesitation, the men sprang into action. “We were just making sure the kids were far enough away so they wouldn’t get hurt,” Zarco recalled.
They rushed to alert the driver and began pulling students from the bus one by one, pushing through thick smoke and growing flames to reach the back rows. Just moments after the last child was evacuated, the entire bus was engulfed in fire.
“The bus caught fire right away — probably within two or three minutes,” Zarco said. “It all happened fast.”
The once bright yellow bus was reduced to a gray shell, but thanks to the men’s quick thinking, every student made it out unharmed.
Reflecting on that morning, Perea said he believes their presence was no coincidence. “God put you in that place for a reason — to help the kids, to help the community.”
CAL FIRE Division Chief Larry Pendarvis summed it up best: “Buses can be replaced. Humans can’t.”