We have seen a number of natural disasters over the years. Often, these events while harrowing, produce tremendous stories of courage that continue to inspire. Such is the case with the deadly Camp Fire, which essentially wiped out the small town of Paradise, California in 2018.

We’ve seen countless news reports and stories from that time. We even got a stirring documentary from Ron Howard. It’s also inspired books and a lot of exploration. One of those stories serves as the inspiration for The Lost Bus, which dropped in theaters in September and drops on Apple TV+ on Friday.

The film centers on Kevin McKay (Matthew McConaughey), who is a local bus driver that’s down-on-his luck. As we open—on November 7, 2018—McKay is struggling to make a living. His mother (Kay McConaughey) is struggling with health issues. And he’s struggling to maintain a relationship with his teenage son, Shaun (Levi McConaughey). All that has him feeling pressure all the time.

The following day, he’s off to work but it’s not going well. He’s got pressure at home and pressure from his dispatcher. Kevin is nearly stretched to his limit when he notices the big smoke clouds over the mountains. Dispatch assures him the fire is far away, but Kevin isn’t so sure. As it moves closer and nearly overtakes the town, an emergency evacuation is issued.

At an elementary school in the path of the story, a teacher (America Ferrera) is trying to console more than 20 kids whose parents can’t get there in time. They call for a bus to evacuate. No one is in the area—but Kevin. While he wants to see to his own family, he answers the call and picks up the children and their teacher.

What starts as a simple evacuation turns into a harrowing journey of survival as Kevin fights to get the children on his bus to safety amid a raging firestorm that has engulfed the city.

I remember hearing about the Camp Fire. As a native of California, the wildfire issues there—and the issues with PG&E—are familiar to me. I also remember watching the film Rebuilding Paradise, from Howard. It was one of my favorite films the year it was released, a powerful tale of people in a terrible situation.

Kevin was one of those people. His story of survival and courage made national news and changed his life. It was the subject of a book from Lizzie Johnson that served as the inspiration for the script from Paul Greengrass and Brad Ingelsby. Greengrass also directed the film, doing a fantastic job of bringing the story to life.

The way the film tells the story of not just Kevin but of the fire, and those who are seemingly powerless to stop it, is one of the more engaging parts of the film. It’s deeply tense and at times deeply emotional. McConaughey and Ferrera do a nice job in the lead roles, and have some moving sequences on the bus, but it’s the situation and the craft that is the star here.

This is an engaging and tense tale. It’s one of the stories from the fire I hadn’t heard much about, and this film does a great job of laying the story out in an interesting way. It makes for an engaging streaming film that’s worth checking out.

The Lost Bus streams on Apple TV+ on Friday, October 3.

Matthew Fox is a graduate of the Radio, Television and Film program at Biola University, and a giant nerd. He spends his free time watching movies, TV, and obsessing about football. He is a member of the FSWA. You can find him @knighthawk7734 on Twitter and as co-host of the Fantasy Football Roundtable Podcast.