School bus driver fell asleep before crash, report says

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA/Gray News) - A school bus driver fell asleep while driving, according to a crash report.

The report says on Feb. 12, Angela Lane Weaver, 47, fell asleep, ran off the road and overcorrected. The bus then ran off the road, hit a ditch and tree before overturning on Mason Ferry Road in Mobile, Alabama.

The bus was carrying 14 students. Seven were injured in the crash, according to the report.

Tiffany Blankenchip, whose daughter was on the bus at the time of the crash, said this is not the first time she has been concerned with Weaver’s driving.

“My daughter’s told me on many occasions, all the different issues that the bus driver had,” Blankenchip said. “I truly don’t think that the bus driver would intentionally hurt anyone, but I feel like it’s negligent.”

WALA received photos from a parent of Weaver allegedly driving a school bus on Feb. 21, nine days after the crash.

“The driver was placed on administrative leave immediately after the accident based on the information we had at the time. She briefly returned to work. We then received new information, so she was placed back on administrative leave, where she remains today. Now that ALEA has finalized its report, that report will be part of our ongoing investigation as we determine further disciplinary action,” the school district said in a statement.

WALA found that Weaver had also been issued three speeding tickets in the last four years, all for going more than 19 miles per hour over the speed limit.

A previous crash report also revealed that Weaver admitted to falling asleep behind the wheel in 2021.