Maryland school district requests National Guard to fill in for sick bus drivers

One school district is seeking help from the National Guard as its school bus service has been crippled by COVID-19.

One of the largest school districts in Maryland is asking for help at the highest level to address its bus driver shortage brought on by the omicron surge.

Montgomery County Public Schools asked county officials to urge the state to deploy the National Guard and have them drive the district's school buses.

On Wednesday, staffing shortages resulted in 40 to 80 routes being canceled, according to Montgomery County Public Schools spokesman Chris Cram.

The school system serves more than 162,000 students and includes 1,400 buses.