WOBURN, MASS. (WHDH) - Some Woburn elementary school students experienced a scary ride home on Thursday. Parent said the usual school bus driver wasn’t at the wheel, and the person who was didn’t know where he was going.

Jen McDonough’s daughter was on the school bus, which left Hurld Wyman Elementary School. Parents said they started to worry when it didn’t get to the drop-off spots on time.

“She came running off the bus hysterically crying and explaining the whole thing, saying the bus driver was mean and yelling at them and swearing and basically the kids were saying ‘that’s my stop! that’s my stop!’ and he wouldn’t let them off,” McDonough said.

Families said they couldn’t track the school bus’s location.

“I did notice it was a new bus driver yesterday on the way home, and they hadn’t logged onto the bus app,” said another mom Sarah Flaherty.

Cleudy Vielot said his wife was concerned when her daughter didn’t arrive home.

“Yeah, yeah she was nervous. She was at work. She was nervous,” Vielot said.

One parent told 7News a student on the school bus called his mom, who then called police.

Woburn police officers found the school bus and drove some students home in their cruisers, including Vielot’s stepdaughter. 

In a statement, Woburn’s superintendent of schools said “Thankfully all students made it home safely. We have shared our concerns with the transportation provider…”

Now reunited with their kids, parents are breathing a sigh of relief.

“It was very scary but I’m just glad she’s safe,” McDonough said.

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