They say that not all heroes wear capes. Some come in everyday clothing, looking unassuming. What sets them apart from the rest is their heart of gold. As with the case of a Florida man who was hailed a hero after spending every ounce of energy saving the kids. He died at the end, but his legacy will live forever, especially with the families of the children he saved.
Johnathon Grayer was his name and he was only 25 years old. He had been driving a Ryder box truck down Georgia Highway 4 on a Wednesday afternoon. He was just right outside alma in Bacon Country when the vehicle he was driving rear-ended a school bus that happened to be in the area. The bus then had stopped to unload the children in it. Georgia State Patrol (GSP) had conducted preliminary investigations and had gathered a few of these facts.
According to the GSP, the bus had been carrying around 10 children at the time when the crash occurred. The weak would have opted to run away, but Grayer opted to help the bus driver bring the children to safety. The got the young ones off the bus, as explained by George State Trooper, Shane Copeland.
Grayer did everything in his power to help children off the bus. After he did all that he could, he eventually collapsed. He was later pronounced dead. The crash injured him, but Copeland believes that the truck driver must have been running on adrenaline until his body eventually caved. He says, “He was pretty much done by that point.”
Investigators also examined footage from the surveillance camera that was installed on the bus. They caught scenes where Grayer was giving his paramount effort to lift the seats that had trapped the children in their places. The wreckage from the bus’s interior looked like a gnarled maze as everything inside crumpled like it had been made of aluminum after the impact. A photo had also been published showing the back end of the bus, with its rear emergency exit unusable and mangled. The rear bumped was also crushed and the vehicle could be scene standing upright on the grass at the side of the road.
Authorities behind the investigation claim that the bus had been going at a speed between 50 to 60 mph, which means that the collision had definitely made a significant impact. After the accident, two helicopters immediately went to the scene to assist in evacuating the students, according to Bacon County Emergency Management Agency Director Danny Turner.
Of the ten students involved in the crash, three were taken to Shands Jacksonville Medical Center. The others, as well as the bus driver named Jerry Sweat, were taken to Bacon County Hospital. According to reports regarding the crash, the students in the bus were of varying ages. Some were in elementary while the others were in high school. Luckily, none of them had suffered significant injuries from the strong impact. Parents of the victims were clearly grateful because none of their children had become casualties from the crash.
Georgia’s governor also quickly responded to the news. Gov. Brian Kemp tweeted, “Terrible news out of Alma.” He also said that he and his family continue to pray for the welfare of the students as well as prayers of peace for Grayer’s mourning family members. And as with every crash, a team of Georgia State Troopers specializing in reconstruction of collisions continue to investigate and look deeper into the incident. Copeland also promised that they will look further into this and make it their priority to look into what had happened.
Copeland assures everyone by stating, “We try to do the standard procedures on every crash and treat all crashes equally. However emotionally, you can’t help but to think I’ve got three children and you can’t help but to think of your three children on their bus back home and it does make it personal if that make’s sense.” And as painful as this is to everyone involved, the most pain could likely be felt by Grayer’s family. They had lost a hero who did the best of the situation he had been dealt with.
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