School Bus Driver Arrested After Driving School Bus Intoxicated With Students Aboard

Mark McNeil, a school bus driver in Flagler County, Florida, drove drunk while transporting 40 middle school students, authorities say. On Wednesday, he was arrested.

McNeil is alleged to have had four times the legal limit of blood alcohol content when he was taken into custody. He was let out on bond on Thursday.

The 60-year-old went to work on Wednesday, and a co-worker smelled alcohol and told managers an hour later, detectives say. He drove the wrong bus, picked up the students, and started dropping them off. He never responded to school officials who were trying to contact him through his radio.

However, he picked up the radio and told district officials that he was having a health emergency. Then, McNeil was found along his bus route. He was taken to a medical facility after exiting the vehicle, stating he was having trouble breathing.

There, officers say that McNeil tried to run when they tried to arrest him.

He has been charged with dui with passengers under 18 and child neglect. McNeil was put on administrative leave, pending the results of an investigation.