Officer Kurt Chapman credited with saving 4 kids from runaway school bus

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An “unlucky” date and a childhood nickname mean little to Officer Kurt Chapman:
On Friday December 13th, children from all over the Tri-State came to Evansville to see The Nut Cracker performed at the Victory Theater. As with all field trips to our downtown venues, several Officers from the EPD were assigned to be a part of the event. The Officers help with bus traffic and they get a chance to interact with the kids, many of whom are from out of town. These events have gone off without any problems until last Friday.
Officer Kurt Chapman was monitoring the buses as they unloaded kids. Officer Chapman saw one of the out of town buses appeared to be rolling towards a group of kids. He also saw that there was nobody in the driver’s seat. Officer Chapman ran towards the kids and yelled for them to get out of the way of the bus. Most of the kids ran out of harm’s way, but 4 kids remained where they were.
Officer Chapman, who ironically was nicknamed “Turtle” in the 2nd grade, was able to out run the rolling bus and push the 4 kids to safety.
A nearby teacher was able to get on the bus and engage the parking brake. While investigating the incident, Officers determined the bus driver had walked to the back of the bus to make sure all of the kids were off. The driver had not engaged the parking brake and that allowed the bus to roll. The driver did not realize the bus was rolling until the teacher got on the bus.
The kids were able to continue with their field trip. Officer Chapman has been nominated for a Merit Award for his actions. There is still no official word on an updated nickname for him though. 

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6 COMMENTS

  1. Well good for this guy, but why are you guys not reporting on that Hicks fella?

    • The CCO never seems to report on the EPD in a negative manner. They are the largest local government entity and deserve a massive amount of scrutiny. Especially after all the crap they have been causing over the last decade or so.

      Also, where are these camera’s Bolin promised all the cops would be wearing?

      • You seem to have forgotten our coverage of the teargas bombing of Louise Milan’s home and that idiotic thing with the black fireman on a bike. We not only tore them up but one of us knows the family. We do not nit pick them as much as you and John Doe would like but that is our prerogative.

        • There were a lot more very serious blunders than that. Especially ones that are costing the taxpayers money.

  2. I worked with Kurt for several years before he became a police officer, and I can easily visualize him putting his life in danger for these kids as he does every day. He deserves recognition for bravely helping others. He is one great guy!

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