LINDEN, N.J. (1010 WINS) — A New Jersey teacher chased after a moving SUV and jumped inside to stop it after it started rolling toward a group of students on Wednesday, surveillance video shows.
Valerie Tauriello was standing outside Soehl Middle School in Linden Wednesday morning when a car a student's father had parked and left on the street started rolling onto a sidewalk, footage obtained by NJ.com shows.
Valerie Tauriello.Linden Public Schools
Not long after the car started moving, the health and physical education teacher jumped into action, running after it, getting into the driver's seat and hitting the brakes.
"It was a situation where a lot of people could have become injured," Tauriello told the outlet.
"[The dad] went running to give his kid [a forgotten] iPad, so he wasn't near it," she explained. "So I figured I'm the only one who can get to this car right now."
The school's principal, Gwendolyn Long, praised Tauriello in a statement she provided to the outlet.
"She did not hesitate to risk her life to save our students," Long wrote. "This is the person she is, and this is every day with Ms. Tauriello, thinking of our students first."
"The Soehl Middle School family is just blessed to have her," she added.
