WEST CALDWELL, N.J. (WPIX) – A New Jersey man is suspected of driving a school bus under the influence after crashing into a house in the town of West Caldwell on Friday morning, according to police.
Anthony Stuckey, 37, was arrested and is facing a slew of charges, including suspicion of driving while intoxicated (DWI) and 15 counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Stuckey had just dropped off students at West Caldwell Tech High School before the crash, police said.
Siva Thangam, a professor at Stevens Institute of Technology, was at work when the school bus veered off the road and crashed into his home. Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt.
“[Police] told me the damage was extensive,” Thangam said. “I asked him if anyone was injured, and he said nobody was injured.”
Thangam is also thankful he wasn’t working from home that day, as the bus plowed through the side of the home where his office is located.
“If I was working from home, if it was a Saturday for example, and I was working from home, I would have been there,” Thangam said.
Police shut down the block near Thangam’s home to investigate. But neighbors have complained for years about drivers speeding along a sharp curve in the road, and some of their properties are already protected by guardrails or stone walls.
“The concern is there have been and continue to be a lot of accidents,” said neighbor Richard Wilcox. “Today was yet another one.”
“I think the speed limit is reduced here, but people don’t anticipate it and they don’t slow down,” Wilcox added.
Friday’s accident isn’t even the first to take place on Thangam’s property. He said a tree in his front yard was taken out by a driver a couple of years ago.
“There was a car that could not control itself,” said Thangam, “and hit the tree that was here and came into the bushes that were in the front.”
“What can you do?” he asked. “There’s enough signs there saying you should drive slow.”
