HOPKINS, S.C. -- Friday morning police say 61 year-old Margaret Means crashed her Richland District One school bus in a ditch and was charged with DUI.

"We are losing a lot of lives because of drinking and driving, it is one of our top contributor's factors to our fatalities," said Lance Corporal Brent Kelly with SC Highway Patrol.

Each morning parents send their children to the bus stop...putting trust in the driver that they will get their kids to school safely.

Highway Patrol says Friday morning 61 year-old Margaret Means crashed her bus on Clarkson Road and was charged with DUI. She had a .17 blood alcohol level; double the legal limit.

"Ran off the side of the road and struck the ditch. The bus spun out of control traveling back across the road and ran into the left side of the road and struck the ditch," said Kelly.

Luckily there were no students on the bus at the time of the crash.  Investigators say Means had just dropped off about 100 students from Hopkins Middle and Lower Richland High School less than an hour before the crash.

"You don't want it to happen on school busses with a bus driver because we put our kids on these buses putting them in the hands of these drivers to get them to school and back home safely."

According to the incident report Means had blood shot eyes and had a strong odor of alcohol on her.
Lance Corporal Brent Kelly says drinking and driving is a bad decision no matter what type of vehicle you are driving.

"When you are transporting other people, that puts a bigger perspective because that puts so many other people's lives at risk when you do that," said Kelly. 

Richland District One says Means is currently still employed but is not driving school buses at this time.

WLTX