The school bus driver involved in a collision that killed a 12-year-old RSU 13 student Friday afternoon has been placed on administrative leave as state and local officials continue investigating the incident.
The collision occurred around 2:20 p.m. at the intersection of Broadway and Eliza Steele Drive in Rockland. The student, identified by his family as Brayden Callahan, was first taken to a local hospital before being airlifted to Maine Medical Center in Portland, where he died from his injuries on Saturday.
On Monday, the Rockland Police Department confirmed that 65-year-old bus driver Jeffrey Colburn has been removed from duty pending the outcome of the investigation. RSU 13 officials said the district is cooperating fully with law enforcement.
Public records indicate Colburn was convicted of operating under the influence in June 2015 and had his license suspended for 150 days. Under Maine law at the time, that conviction would have prohibited him from driving a school bus for 10 years.
He was also involved in a crash between a school bus he was driving and an automobile earlier this year, reports indicate.
Community members have raised questions about when RSU 13 hired him and how long he had been driving his route ahead of the June 2025 expiration of that prohibition.
Colburn has not been charged in connection with the crash. The investigation now includes Rockland Police, the Knox County District Attorney’s Office, the Maine State Police Crash Reconstruction and Commercial Vehicle units, the Maine Bureau of Highway Safety, and the Office of Chief Medical Examiner.
RSU 13 Superintendent John McDonald canceled school Monday and Tuesday and told families the district is making counseling services available for students following the tragedy.
