When Renetia Smith’s bus full of 20 kids caught on fire, she did not hesitate before taking charge. Within seconds, her seatbelt was off, the bus door was open and she was getting kids off of the bus as quickly as possible. But even then, she took the time to check the bus one last time and make sure the it was empty, although it was being taken over by flames, according to NBC Washington.

“This fire was going too fast. I had a little extinguisher,” she said. “It was too late. I couldn’t do anything.”

Fazlul Kabir, a bystander of the fire, took to Facebook to make a post thanking Smith and detailing her heroic efforts.

“A big THANK YOU to our school bus driver Reneita Smith who just saved 20 elementary school kids from a bus fire that completely destroyed the bus. Not only did Reneita take each one of the 20 kids from the bus one by one, but she also went into the empty bus again to check if everyone was out, while it was still burning.”

According to Kabir, Smith said that she herself is a mother of two. Smith told news outlets that while children are on her bus, however, they are all “her babies.” She went on, “It is my job to save them.”

Photo Credit: Fazlul Kabir