Bus company offers insight after teen with Down syndrome dropped off at closed school

STOWE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — ABC Transit said its driver dropped off Kayla Durler, 17, at Sto-Rox High School on Friday despite school being canceled due to a gas line rupture.

“There were no other kids at the school, there were no other teachers, there was nobody there, how could you not notice there was something, a clue something was wrong?” Kayla’s father Joe Tulick said.

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But ABC Transit said the driver didn’t have any clue anything was wrong. The company is accepting fault when it comes to miscommunication with Kayla’s driver which led to her being picked up for school.

“ABC Transit’s driver then dropped Kayla off at the Jr./Sr. High School, watched her walk into the waiting area and sit down. Once Kayla was inside, the ABC Transit driver then departed the school,” said ABC Transit spokesperson.

According to Sto-Rox School District, students with special needs like Kayla go through a separate door with a waiting area and are buzzed into the building. That is the area where the driver dropped Kayla off, but no one ever buzzed her in leading to her disappearing and missing throughout the city for 30 hours.

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“The whole system failed her, failed not just her but everybody, it failed everybody. If that can happen to one girl that can happen to anybody,” Tulick said.

While police told Channel 11 on Friday that Kayla did come in contact with a school staff member, the district said it is still investigating but there were staff members in the building at the time.

When Channel 11 pressed ABC Transit on if this would lead to a communications policy change or if anyone from the company would follow up with Kayla’s driver during the day, we did not get a response.

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