SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A violent fight broke out between two middle school students on their way home from school Thursday afternoon.
The two students are seventh graders at Bullitt Lick Middle School. The fight began shortly after the bus left school in Shepherdsville to begin its route.
In videos posted to social media, viewers see a student reach over the bus seat, and pull another student's hair. The same student pulling the hair, begins to punch the student repeatedly, and threatened to kill her.
After seeing the video, the mother of the girl hurt, Jennifer Vineyard, said she felt helpless for her daughter.
"When I heard her screaming, 'help me, help me,' I truly believe that if that bus driver hadn't intervened, she would've killed her," said Vineyard.
The woman wearing the green mask in the video, is Leah Uyigue. She's the bus driver responsible for separating the two girls. And in the eye's of Vineyard, responsible for saving her daughter.
"I didn't want to see anyone go to the hospital," said Uyigue. "I had to take my safety into concern as well, but the safety of the child I just felt like was more important at that particular moment."
While Uyigue says nothing this violent has happened on her bus, she hopes the district considers adding bus monitors or other solutions.
"Any assistance of some support would be greatly appreciated," Uyigue said.
Bullitt County Schools sent WDRB a statement in response to the fight, saying the school district is aware of the "unacceptable incident" on the school bus.
"The District’s Core Value of ‘Our Students Matter Most’ is not taken lightly and behaviors inconsistent with this Value will not be tolerated," Bullitt County Schools said in a statement. "The District is already taking steps, in coordination with local law enforcement authorities, to address the incident. In addition, support will be provided to all those affected, whether students or staff. If changes are needed to address Board Policy in this area, that, too, will be reviewed.
"We will continue to gather all the facts, speak with the individuals involved, and take any necessary actions per our school and district behavior policies and expectations. Through this Shared Accountability and cooperation, we will be able to come to an appropriate resolution and help prevent incidents like this from occurring in the future. We ask everyone’s patience while we work through this necessary process."
"I'm hoping they do the right thing, but if they don't I'm not going to lay down and be quiet about this," said Vineyard. "Not just for my kid, but other kids."
Vineyard said her daughter suffered a concussion, but is hoping to return to school on Monday.
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