A child left behind – update

The 6-year-old child who was abandoned and left on a hot school bus Wednesday morning was able to survive thanks to her intelligence and a good neighbor.

Initial reports say the child fell asleep on VWSD Bus #04128 after being picked up from her residence to be transported to the Summer Bridge program at Sherman Avenue Elementary. When the bus was done dropping off students at the school, the driver then proceeded back to his residence near Fisher Ferry and Funches Road. The driver secured the bus and left it at his residence locking the child inside. The child awoke a short time later, probably within an hours time, and was on the bus less than 3 hours from the time they were picked up and then locked in.

(submitted by a concerned reader of the Vicksburg Daily News)

The driver obviously did not check to see if all the children were off the bus prior to leaving Sherman Avenue or before locking the bus at his residence.

Once the child awoke, they were bright enough to realize something was wrong and to exit the bus. The 6-year-old somehow managed to operate the emergency exit at the back of the bus and get out. The child then was able to find the main roadway. That road, Fisher Ferry near it’s intersection with Funches Road, is a busy road and a main thoroughfare for thousands of residents. The child proceeded up the road, not quite sure where they were or which direction to go. The road near where she entered dangerously narrows over the bridge. The child then walked about over a quarter of a mile up that roadway before someone stopped to check on her. Fisher Ferry, at that time of day, is fairly busy and several cars had to have passed her.

(submitted by a concerned reader of the Vicksburg Daily News)

The 6-year-old-child, who’s name we are withholding, was lucky that the person who stopped did so out of concern for a child walking that section of the road. The older man who picked her up was running late, according to one report, but knew something was wrong and stopped to check on the 6-year-old. The Vicksburg Daily News has the name of the man who picked her up but we are withholding his name as well until the investigation has concluded.

The man called authorities and was on the phone with them when the child recognized the Zips at Goodrum and Fisher Ferry. The child was able to direct the man to her grand parents house where law enforcement was soon on scene.

The Vicksburg Warren School District issued a statement to the Vicksburg Daily News stating:

“The safety of our students is our top priority. The district has safety protocol procedures for transporting students and all staff has been trained accordingly. Any reports or breaches of these protocols are investigated fully and the appropriate actions are followed. In order to increase safety, last school year we ordered the No Student Left Behind Alarm System devices for all buses to help eliminate human error. With this system, an alarm activates at the end of the route, and the driver has to walk to the back of the bus to turn it off. This ensures that the driver inspects each seat to confirm that the entire bus is empty. This system has been installed in some of our buses, but due to a backorder, not all devices have been delivered. We anticipate the entire fleet will be equipped with the devices by next school year.”

Questions remain about the No Student Left Behind system; how many units are installed and why these busses are not being used in the summertime when less students are being transported?

Sheriff Martin Pace said his investigators are almost done with their investigation and will turn it over to the District Attorney’s office to see if charges will be filed.

District Attorney Ricky Smith stated to the Vicksburg Daily News that based on the way the law is written there has to be injury to the child. “Without injury, there probably aren’t any charges that can be brought. However, we would have to see all the evidence before we can make that determination.”