St. Louis County school bus driver arrested for DWI

A St. Louis County school bus driver was arrested for driving while intoxicated Wednesday morning on the job. Seventeen kids, who attend South Ridge School in Alborn, were on the bus at the time and were unharmed. Authorities say the 44-year-old man had a .16 BAC in his preliminary breath test.

Just after midnight on Wednesday, someone contacted the Sheriff’s Office about a bus driver consuming alcohol while off duty. Reportedly, he was highly intoxicated, and they were concerned that he would not be sober for his shift in the morning.

The Sheriff’s Office made contact with the man at 6 a.m. who allegedly told officers he would not be going to work. Around 7 a.m., authorities contacted the district and learned that driver was already on his route.

Deputies located the bus and conducted a traffic stop on Independence Rd. just north of Seville Rd. The bus driver was ultimately was arrested for a DWI without incident.

The school district sent staff to take custody of the bus and children. They also notified parents of this incident.

Under Minnesota Law, there is a zero tolerance policy for driving under the influence of any amount of alcohol while operating a school bus.

Dr. Reggie Engebrtison, Superintendent for St. Louis County Schools, provided WDIO with the following statement:

We take the safety of our students and staff very seriously. We are working in cooperation with the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office as they proceed with their investigation. Even though there is a shortage of bus drivers, we are taking all measures to ensure that we have enough drivers to cover our routes in order to get our students to and from school safely.

Formal charges are pending. WDIO does not usually name suspects until after they are formally charged.