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First Lady stops in to educate and remind
Posted: 08.20.2012 at 8:08 PM
Matt Prichard

Matt Prichard joined the Fox 31 News Team in May of 2012 as a general assignment reporter.

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First Lady Sandra Deal addresses school bus safety Monday.  / Matt Prichard
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ALBANY, GA -- Georgia's First Lady, Sandra Deal, touched down in Southwest Georgia Monday to discuss safety regulations for drivers approaching a stopped school bus.

"We want to be very sure that we protect them. And we thought, maybe it's just that people don't know they're supposed to stop. People get busy in their lives and we have more buses on the road than ever before," said First Lady, Sandra Deal.

The campaign titled, "stop means stop," is led by office of highway safety director Harris Blackwood who says, stopping for school busses is a bigger issue than most Georgians think.

"We realized, when we looked at the data, that there's a real problem in fatalities, not on school buses, but approaching school buses. And we want together with schools, with drivers, and our partners in law enforcement to bring that number down," said Blackwood.

The state has led the nation in child-fatalities, after getting off a bus the last three years. 11-fatalities have been recorded since 1996, averaging about 2-per-year. Dougherty County Superintendent Dr. Joshua Murfree reiterated these statistics saying, this has to change.

"We don't need this, any child that gets hurt, as you can tell they are really serious about this," said Dr. Murfree.

First Lady Sandra Deal went on to say that no rules or regulations have changed. However they want the public to be reminded, that stopping for a school bus is not an option.

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