Driver lauded by Calais school for his heroics Bus avoided downed power line

CALAIS – After Harry Jordan saved the city’s boys basketball team from what could have been a huge tragedy, several people suggested he be recognized for his steady foot and good defensive driving.

That happened Wednesday.

Calais High School activities director Randy Morrison presented Jordan with a plaque. Coach Ed Leeman and junior varsity head coach Marcia Rogers were present at the awards presentation.

“The bus driver is one of those unsung heroes,” Morrison said. “I think we take that group of people for granted because they get our kids there safely time in and time out.” He said the school department also was in the process of nominating Jordan for a statewide award.

Rogers gave Jordan a big hug.

Leeman praised the bus driver. “Harry is the best,” he said.

Jordan admitted the downed power line within five feet of his bus was his biggest driving challenge to date.

In January, Jordan was hailed as a hero just days after he safely stopped the school bus he was driving within a few feet of a sparking power line. About 25 people were on board, including players and their coaches. The bus had passed through Danforth and was headed toward Brookton when the incident occurred.

The Calais Blue Devils boys varsity and junior varsity basketball players had just walked away with wins against their Houlton counterparts. It was around 5:30 p.m., and the team was returning to Calais on U.S. Route 1. It was windy and the pavement was wet.

High winds had caused a tree to snap and fall onto power lines. A downed power line dropped about five feet in front of the bus. Sparks were dancing on the pavement.

Leeman described what happened. “I was sitting up front and Harry hit the brakes … and the next thing we know fire was coming across the line where a tree or limb was across the line. …You could hear the poles snapping.” He said it all happened within about 30 seconds.

Jordan began to back the bus up. “Then [we] saw … like, a blue surge and I think it caused the other poles to snap and you could hear them snapping out there,” Leeman said. “Thank God the poles didn’t fall the other way across the road because then they would have been on the bus.”

The JV coach got out to assist and was behind the bus directing when the transformer exploded and lit up the sky. More utility wires began to drop. A car that was behind the bus also had stopped. The JV coach got into the car, and she and the driver went for help.

Jordan, who has been driving a bus since 1994, said his primary goal was to move the bus out of harm’s way. “We situated the bus where it was a safe spot to stop it after everything happened,” he said. He made sure everyone on board was safe. “The coaches actually handled the kids very well … got them calmed down,” he said.

Fire departments from neighboring towns soon arrived and secured the area. Once the situation was deemed safe, Jordan was told he could turn the bus around. “We couldn’t go forward. The only thing we could do was turn the bus around in between guardrails,” Jordan said. “[It took] about 20-25 turns back and forth to get it turned around in the road. We had about eight inches to spare,” he said. It took him about 30 minutes to complete the turn.

The detour took them about an hour out of their way.

Shortly after the incident occurred, officials at Eastern Maine Electric Co-op described it as a “freak accident.” Company officials said that a huge tree fell from outside the line right of way onto one of the power lines. That broke the first pole and then power lines and phone cables started a chain reaction to the next two poles. Before the incident, the utility company had done a lot of work along Route 1 cutting trees and replacing poles, officials said.