A Bus Full Of Kids Vanished Before Parents Learned The Wild Truth
The small town of Chowchilla, California, was rocked when a bus full of children and its driver seemed to vanish from thin air. The worried parents and community didn’t know where they could've possibly gone. When the details about their location started pouring in, however, the situation seemed far worse than anyone could've imagined. If it weren't for one brave individual, the whereabouts of the bus —and the children within — might've remained a mystery forever.
Dairyland Elementary
On July 15th, 1976, the summer school kids of Dairyland Elementary were on a sleepy bus ride back from a swimming pool field trip. They had one more day left in their fun-filled program before they were free to enjoy their final few weeks of vacation.
Veteran driver
Frank "Ed" Ray manned the wheel. That day, he was shuttling the group of 26 kids, ages 5-14, many of them still in their wet swimsuits from the day's activities, waiting to change once they got home.
Following right behind
In his 23 years driving bus part-time, Ed had long since mastered operating his rig under premium levels of distraction. So when he clocked a white van with its hood up on the road, he made to pass on by.
In danger
Before Ed could flip his blinker, he decided to holler out his window to offer the van driver help. That never happened, though. Instead, Ed watched in surreal dread, as a man wearing pantyhose over his face appeared at the bus door wielding a gun.
