February 07, 2023  |  07:58 am

A Florida woman who was driving an old, repurposed school bus is in custody after a pursuit with St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s deputies Tuesday (Feb. 7) morning.

Just before 6 a.m. Tuesday, STPSO deputies received a call from employees of a gas station in the 2200 block of Florida Street in Mandeville after a woman came into the store carrying a blowtorch and said she was looking for the local Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) Office. She was driving a school bus covered in graffiti. The bus had a Virginia license plate.

STPSO Deputies located the bus on U.S. Highway 190 near Wal-mart and a pursuit ensued and continued into downtown Covington, where the driver crashed the bus into a fence at St. Scholastica Academy.  

The driver,  Natalie Jade Jarvis (DOB 10/14/1985) was taken into custody. It is believed she has been living in the bus at a local state park for the past month. Last month, a male that was also believed to have been living in the bus with Jade was arrested on domestic abuse charges at the state park.

There were no other occupants on the bus at the time, and the blow torch was recovered from inside the bus.

Covington Police Department assisted with the pursuit, and Fire District 4 assisted at the gas station on Florida Street.

The incident is still under investigation and felony charges are pending.