A bus driver with with 0,7 promille alcohol in his blood was taken off the vehicle supposed to take students from the 18th secondary comprehensive school in Sofia to the town of Tryavna in central Bulgaria on an outdoor school program.

According to reports of private TV station bTV, a parent who had accompanied his child to the bus drove after the vehicle for a while and grew suspicious of the inadequate maneuvers of the man behind the wheel.

The man called the 112 emergency hotline immediately to report the case.

A breathanalyzer test of Yordan Hristov conducted by police officers revealed a blood-alcohol level of 0.7, or 0.2 promille over the legal limit.

The driver claimed that he had not been drinking alcohol, adding that the high breath analyzer readings were due to medicines he had been taking.

The explanation made the police officers break into laughter.

The manager of the Rolita company that had been hired for the trip also tested the driver and the breathalyzer readings showed no traces of alcohol in Hristov's blood.

The driver of the bus refused to sign the penalty statement issued by officers of the state Automobile Administration Agency (DAI) establishing three faults of the vehicle – a broken winker, an unhinged mudguard and irregularities with the tachometer.

The children eventually headed for Tryavna on another bus driven by the manager of the transportation company.