Indiana School District Forced to Close After Bus Theft, Vandalism

Classes were cancelled before they barely even began!

Students of one Indiana school district got an unexpected and extended summer vacation as administrators were forced to cancel classes on only the fifth day of the school year.

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I didn't realize the problem had gotten so bad.

Over the last several years, we've heard about the rise in catalytic converter theft not only in the Hoosier State but across the country. According to sources, this trend was driven by an organized theft ring that operated nationwide between 2020 and 2022.

Unfortunately, it seems as if the problem is not yet resolved.

According to South Bend's WNDU the Michigan City Area School district was forced to cancel classes upon discovering one early Tuesday morning that its fleet of school busses had been vandalized, including having their catalytic converter stolen.

According to sources the district cancelled in-person classes and had to pivot to virtual learning due to the vandalism. After all, you can hold class if your students can't make it to the school!

The disappointing news comes during a nationwide school bus driver shortage. In fact, recently two schools in Pennsylvania were forced to cancel classes after there were not enough bus drivers to pick up students.

On Friday, August 22 the district shared the encouraging news that the fleet was back in service:

Thanks to the incredible work of our mechanics, Shop Foreman Dave Lohraff, Assistant Shop Foreman Steve Smith, Mechanics Jacob Miller and Davian Sanchez, 20 buses are back on the road, and normal operations have resumed today.