Rock Hill elementary student, 7, locked in school bus; driver suspended
A Rock Hill elementary student was locked in a school bus alone Wednesday and the driver has been suspended, according to a police report and school officials.
A mother told Rock Hill police that her 7-year-old Sunset Park Elementary School student was stuck alone on a school bus from 8 a.m. to noon Wednesday, the report states.
However, the Rock Hill school district said the report that the student was on the bus from 8 a.m. to noon “is not factually correct.”
The child was found on the bus at about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, said a statement Thursday from Rock Hill schools communications director Mychal Frost.
Frost said in a statement that the driver, who was not identified, has been suspended.
The mother told police that she was notified that her son was absent from school Wednesday morning, but that she knew that he had been picked up by the bus, the police report says.
The mother told police that Sunset Park school representatives and the bus driver’s supervisor told her the driver had not noticed the child was still on the bus after it returned to the district bus transportation center, the report states.
The mother told police the school representatives were apologetic. The identities of the mother and the child were not listed on the report.
Frost said the student fell asleep underneath a seat on the bus during the morning route to school, and that he woke up after the bus returned to the transportation center.
Another driver beginning afternoon pickup routes saw the student standing near the door of the bus, and helped the student get off, Frost said.
Frost’s statement said: “During the post-route check of the bus at 8:30 a.m., the driver did not see the student sleeping under the seat. We regret this happened, and are thankful the student was not harmed.”
The statement continued: “The student was checked by staff at the transportation center, and returned to school by 10:45 a.m., where he was checked by the school nurse and picked up by his mother. Wednesday was a half day, and elementary students dismissed at 11 a.m. and that student was dismissed at the same time as the other children at the school.”
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This story was originally published June 2, 2017 at 5:57 AM with the headline "Rock Hill elementary student, 7, locked in school bus; driver suspended."