ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, January 18, 1996 TAG: 9601180081
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
NOTE: Above
When driver Terri Labiosa stopped her school bus at a stop sign at Cove Road and Florida Avenue in Northwest Roanoke Wednesday morning, a teen-ager standing at the curb motioned for her to open the door.
Labiosa thought the youngster was probably a student with a question about bus schedules or routes. It was about 8:15 a.m., and she had just finished a morning run to Westside Elementary School. She was preparing to begin on a route for Fishburn Park Elementary.
Labiosa never suspected she was about to be hijacked.
The next 20 minutes were terror for the driver and her 9-year-old daughter, who was riding with her because she attends Fishburn Park. There were no other children on the bus.
The youth, estimated by Roanoke police to be about 15, brandished what appeared to be a 12-inch hunting knife and ordered Labiosa to drive him to Salem. He put the knife by her side and gave her directions that led the bus on a rambling route, police said.
He told the girl to lie down on a seat and be quiet, police said, and would not let her mother stop the bus and let the child off.
Roanoke school buses have two-way radios, but school officials said Labiosa was too frightened to contact her dispatcher, fearing the youngster might injure her or her daughter. She did not know him, police said.
The bus traveled several miles through Northwest Roanoke before entering Salem, traveling south on Electric Road and then west on Roanoke Boulevard to the Salem Civic Center parking lot.
From there, Labiosa was ordered onto Eighth Street and Indiana Street through Salem, and then back to Electric Road. The youth then directed her to go onto Midland Road, east of Electric Road, and he got off in the vicinity of Midland and Highland roads.
Labiosa told Salem police that the youngster ran toward Electric Road after leaving the bus, and she lost sight of him. Police searched the area, but were unable to locate him.
Roanoke police said no arrest had been made late Wednesday, and declined to say whether they have a suspect. Police described the youth as a black male with a deep voice, about 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighing about 140 pounds. He was wearing a black ski hat and a dark Members Only jacket.
Neither Labiosa nor her daughter was injured. The youth did not say why he wanted to go to Salem or why he had boarded the bus, school officials said.
The teen-ager told the driver she would not be hurt if she followed his directions, Salem police Sgt. David Rhodenizer said. Labiosa told police the youth held the knife by her side throughout the trip.
Richard Kelley, assistant superintendent for operations for Roanoke schools, said Labiosa, a first-year driver, appeared to comply with all bus system rules in the incident.
Children of drivers are allowed to ride a bus until they reach the school where they attend. Labiosa was preparing to pick up children in Northwest Roanoke who attend Fishburn Park in Southwest Roanoke.
Labiosa, 34, has been given the rest of the week off with pay to recover from the trauma, said Lissy Runyon, public information officer for city schools. The driver could not be reached for comment.
``We were pleased with the way she responded. We want to give her a little rest,'' Runyon said. School officials were relieved that no one was injured and that there were no other children on the bus.
Drivers are not supposed to allow people other than students to ride buses, Kelley said, but that they are expected to be courteous and helpful to parents and youngsters who appear to be students and approach buses seeking information about schedules and routes, he said.
"She stopped for a stop sign and he was standing there. He looked like a student who wanted to ask her something," Kelley said. "She had no reason to suspect that he was going to pull a knife and get on the bus."
Frequently, new students who have just moved into neighborhoods will come to bus stops to seek information on routes and schedules, he said.
Kelley said this is the first time a bus has been hijacked during the 15 years he has been with the school division.
"Once a driver opens the door, they can be in a difficult position," he said. "This reinforces the need for bus drivers to be alert to handle situations in a judicious manner."
Kelley said he and Transportation Director Chauncey Logan will review the case and procedures for bus operations to see if changes are needed.
He said he doesn't know of any other precautions to prevent hijackings except to place security officers on each bus. Even that might not prevent such an incident, Kelley said, because the hijacker might board a bus before security officers could respond.
LENGTH: Medium: 87 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Map by staff: Route of hijacking. color.by CNB