A DeKalb County mother is speaking out after her 8-year-old son was injured in October while getting off the school bus. The incident occurred on October 13 at a bus stop in Lithonia, when a substitute bus driver closed the door of the bus on the child’s backpack as the child was exiting. The force of the door closing on the backpack caused the child to be yanked backward so that his head hit the door. The woman noticed that her child was trapped and began screaming for the driver to open the door.
The woman took the child to the emergency room, where it was revealed that he had suffered a concussion. DeKalb schools stated that they had investigated the incident, discovered that the child’s backpack was closed in the door, and that the bus driver had apologized for the incident. However, the mother said that safety was lacking and that the normal bus driver for that route would not have let this happen.
School districts have tremendous responsibility for the safety of children when riding the bus, including watching to ensure that each child has safely exited the bus before closing the door. Unfortunately, dozens of children are injured each year in this manner across the U.S. In 2015, a 6-year-old girl in Kentucky was dragged more than 1,000 feet alongside a school bus after the bus driver failed to realize that her backpack was closed in the door.
Parents across the metro Atlanta area have been complaining to news media their concerns about school bus safety this year, as the area is facing a school bus driver shortage that they say has resulted in overcrowding and lesser qualified drivers. If your child was injured as a result of unsafe practices on a school bus, an experienced school bus accident attorney from Cambre & Associates LLC can help you understand the legal process of seeking compensation for the expenses and impacts of your child’s injury. For a free case evaluation, contact us online.
