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news
Top Member
Canada
2951 Posts |
 Posted - 11/28/2006 : 6:35:00 PM
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11/28/06 - ABC30.com, CA - The highway patrol says a child was hit and killed by a school bus just after 4 p.m. Tuesday.
CHP officers say the coroner is on the scene. It happened in the 2100 block of Mary Avenue just a few blocks south of Jensen.
Officers say the bus is a Head Start school bus that was dropping off kids in the Central Sanger neighborhood. The CHP says the child hit and run over was a two-year-old girl.
Neighbors tell Action News, the child ran out to greet her older sibling as the bus approached.
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80-RE4
Top Member
USA
5700 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 09:46:42 AM
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Parents sue driver of bus that killed girl-Fresno County also named in death of Sanger 2-year-old.-By Chris Collins / The Fresno Bee-04/03/07 04:03:11
The parents of a 2-year-old Sanger girl who died after she was run over by a school bus are suing the driver -- and raising questions about whether school bus drivers follow safety laws meant to protect kids.
"The whole thing reeks of negligence," said the family's attorney, Arturo Gonzalez.
Even though the California Highway Patrol concluded that the toddler was at fault in the accident Nov. 28, Gonzalez said he's confident he can convince a jury that the bus driver broke state law and failed to take basic safety precautions.
The suit, which was filed last week in Fresno County Superior Court and made available Monday, also names the county as a defendant. It says the county should re-evaluate its safety policies and "better train its bus drivers."
On a Tuesday afternoon, 2-year-old Audryana Gonzales and her mother were at a school bus stop across the street from their home waiting to pick up Audryana's 4-year-old sister.
When the sister, Syria Gonzales, got off the bus in the 2100 block of Mary Street in Sanger, the bus driver quickly closed the bus doors and started to drive away, the suit says.
At about the same time, Audryana pulled away from her mother and ran into the path of the bus, a witness said. Gonzalez said Audryana was knocked to the ground and then run over by either the front or back wheels. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
"It happened so quickly," said Ana Rios, 15, who witnessed the accident. "The mom was hitting the bus, telling [the driver] to stop. Then the driver had his head on the steering wheel. I think he was in shock."
Gonzalez said the mother, Angelica Gonzales, and Syria are still traumatized.
No one from the Gonzales family could be reached for comment Monday.
The 53-year-old Sanger bus driver, Ernan Rodriguez, declined to comment.
State law says bus drivers must make sure that all pedestrians are "a safe distance from the school bus before setting the school bus in motion." Gonzalez said Rodriguez violated that law.
Rodriguez also failed to follow a law that requires school bus drivers to get out of the bus and escort children across the street when they need to cross a road, Gonzalez said.
If the suit goes to trial, Gonzalez says, he will argue that Rodriguez was responsible for ensuring that Syria made it safely across the street to her home even though her mom was at the bus stop to pick her up. He said that would have helped avoid the accident.
"You don't take off from a bus stop unless you know everyone is out of the way," Gonzalez said. "It's a no-brainer."
The CHP, however, says Audryana was at fault because she failed to yield to traffic when she went in front of the bus. A CHP spokesman said Monday that no one was available to explain its conclusion.
The spokesman said Rodriguez was not cited for the accident.
The school bus was operated by Fresno County's Head Start program. The director of the county's Economic Opportunities Commission, which oversees the program, declined to comment on the suit.
The lawsuit described Audryana as a 2-year, 2-month-old girl who weighed 30 pounds and was "friendly and outgoing."
"She met new people easily and often asked to be hugged and carried in their arms," the suit reads. "Syria remembers playing with Audryana and keeps Audryana's favorite doll perched on a shelf in her honor."
http://www.fresnobee.com/263/v-printerfriendly/story/39474.html |
Edited by - 80-RE4 on 04/03/2007 09:47:56 AM |
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JK
Top Member
USA
7307 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 1:07:01 PM
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Audryana was a 2-year, 2-month-old girl who weighed 30 pounds? Where in the world was that child's escort to help her cross a busy street. I'm amazed that the industry has been so successful at duping parents in to thinking the school bus is incapable of killing children when we here know that drunks, old people, teenagers, NY taxi cab drivers and all other motorists combined kill fewer kids at the bus stop than the so-called rigorously trained school bus drivers in our country. The school bus is also a yellow monster that kills and parents need to understand the importance of making certain their children are escorted across the road - most especially two-year olds for crying out loud. (jk)
FREE School Bus Safety Ads & Photo Library
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There is no school bus driver shortage!
Properly train, effective support and pay that retains. |
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Sandra (Ennis) Nunn
Top Member
Canada
1180 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 1:39:12 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by JK
Audryana was a 2-year, 2-month-old girl who weighed 30 pounds? Where in the world was that child's escort to help her cross a busy street. (jk)
From the story:
"...Audryana pulled away from her mother and ran into the path of the bus, a witness said."
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Gini
Top Member
USA
1249 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 1:55:05 PM
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| JK- the 2 yr old was waiting w/ her mom on the side of the road, waiting for her 4 yr old sister to cross the road to them. as Sandra pointed out, the 2 yr old pulled away from mom & ran into the path of the bus. toddlers can be incredibly fast, & often yank away from parents to take off for something they're interested in. by the time the parent can catch up to them, it's often too late, as it was in this case. |
1Peter 1:3 |
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JK
Top Member
USA
7307 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 7:12:02 PM
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The child was in the control of the parent, not the bus driver and not the school provider.
I do not believe it is a law in that state that the bus driver must escort all children across the road, but even if so the event does not support that the driver would be outside the bus anyway - not when the bus is proceeding.
A two year-old child can not be made the blame, and the driver was proceeding as usual. Even constantly checking the mirrors does not guarantee at all that the bus driver is checking a specific mirror in the moment. When a school bus is moving there is virtually no time to stop when a child is suddenly that close to a moving bus.
In this case the parent had charge of the child and the bus was proceeding on course.
In reality, and spacific to this story, there seems no one to directly blame here, only that it is dangerous not have kids under firm control at the bus stop and regardless of whoever has charge of a child or children in the moment.
Regardless, it angers me that the industry does not properly inform parents about how dangerous the friendly yellow bus can be. The safest mode of transportation still kills more kids than appropriate caution would allow for - perhaps not in this specific instance but too often remains the case.
As I have said before, when a lackadaisical school bus provider does not encourage and enforce safe practices, what remains at risk are children suffering the consequences of that adult malbehavior.
I see this story’s event as a situation where everyone involved previously believed this could never happen to them -- no need for the bus driver to get too picky.
Well, obviously, they were wrong, and a child is dead as a result.
In this case it would seem to me that the answer is to blame everyone involved equally or blame no one.
Rather than fixing blame I would consider that this event is a horrific warning toward an adult delinquency still not paid by this industry and circumstance collecting one more child was the result.
Saddly, nowhere in the story was the danger zone mentioned and how horribly dangerous the safest mode of transportation to and from school can be when not heeded.
The industry must begin communicating more truthfully with the public and providers must begin communicating more truthfully with parents, in my opinion.
Get picky about safe practices and stick with it.
Train the children. (jk)
FREE School Bus Safety Ads & Photo Library
Post Check, Hostage Takeover, Bus Fire and special effects photos now available Free to use at websites, in newsletters, memos, the local press, letters to parents and more. This is a very popular Website. If you can't get in bookmark the page and try again later.
There is no school bus driver shortage!
Properly train, effective support and pay that retains. |
Edited by - JK on 04/03/2007 7:16:32 PM |
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william
Top Member
USA
1912 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 7:56:10 PM
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It is the law that all children in this state,(CA) pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade, be escorted by the driver when crossing in front of the bus, whether on a public or private road.
However, it is not clear to me whether or not the child was crossing the street, or the bus was approaching the stop when the child ran out into the street, based on the lawyer's statements.
The presence of parents does not relieve the driver of this responsibility. If a parent is waiting to take the child across the street, make every effort to escort the child or both of them.
If the parent refuses, place the child in the parent's custody, notify your dispatcher and write out an incident report to be forwarded to the child's school and transportation department. |
William |
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news
Top Member
Canada
2951 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 8:41:20 PM
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Family Suing Fresno County Over Death of Toddler
04/02/2007 - ABC30.com - KFSN TV
(San Francisco Attorney Arturo Gonzalez) says, "There's a vehicle code provision that requires, and this is such an obvious thing, you wouldn't expect it to be the vehicle code but it is ... You've got to make sure the coast is clear before you take off and that obviously didn't happen here."
full story |
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news
Top Member
Canada
2951 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 8:52:21 PM
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Girl killed by bus
Monday, December 4, 2006 - Reedley Exponent
The child ran in front of the bus as it was starting up after dropping off a passenger, according to witnesses and a California Highway Patrol spokesman. A CHP report said, “The school bus was barely moving ...”
full story
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JK
Top Member
USA
7307 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 8:57:51 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by william
It is the law that all children in this state,(CA) pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade, be escorted by the driver when crossing in front of the bus, whether on a public or private road.
I've been told in the past that some school districts in California do not follow this practice. How are they skirting this law? (jk)
FREE School Bus Safety Ads & Photo Library
Post Check, Hostage Takeover, Bus Fire and special effects photos now available Free to use at websites, in newsletters, memos, the local press, letters to parents and more. This is a very popular Website. If you can't get in bookmark the page and try again later.
There is no school bus driver shortage!
Properly train, effective support and pay that retains. |
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JK
Top Member
USA
7307 Posts |
Posted - 04/03/2007 : 9:00:01 PM
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What does “barely moving mean?” A school bus can travel eight to 12 feet when barely moving - farther when faced downhill. (jk)
FREE School Bus Safety Ads & Photo Library
Post Check, Hostage Takeover, Bus Fire and special effects photos now available Free to use at websites, in newsletters, memos, the local press, letters to parents and more. This is a very popular Website. If you can't get in bookmark the page and try again later.
There is no school bus driver shortage!
Properly train, effective support and pay that retains.
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Sandra (Ennis) Nunn
Top Member
Canada
1180 Posts |
Posted - 04/04/2007 : 9:22:56 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by william
It is the law that all children in this state,(CA) pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade, be escorted by the driver when crossing in front of the bus, whether on a public or private road.
Schoolbus Signal and Schoolbus Stops, California Vehicle Code 22112.
d) When a schoolbus is stopped on a highway or private road for the purpose of loading or unloading pupils, at a location where traffic is not controlled by a traffic officer or official traffic control signal, the schoolbus driver shall do all of the following:
(1) Escort all pupils in prekindergarten, kindergarten, or any of grades 1 to 8, inclusive, who need to cross the highway or private road upon which the schoolbus is stopped. The driver shall use an approved hand-held "STOP" sign while escorting all pupils.
(2) Require all pupils who need to cross the highway or private road upon which the schoolbus is stopped to walk in front of the bus as they cross.
(3) Ensure that all pupils who need to cross the highway or private road upon which the schoolbus is stopped have crossed safely, and that all other pupils and pedestrians are a safe distance from the schoolbus before setting the schoolbus in motion. |
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JK
Top Member
USA
7307 Posts |
Posted - 04/05/2007 : 12:18:25 AM
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I looked for that law a few years back and could not find it. Very well done. From what I've been told, in that more than a few school districts do not apply this law, leaves me to believe there exists an exemption of some sort. (jk)
FREE School Bus Safety Ads & Photo Library
Post Check, Hostage Takeover, Bus Fire and special effects photos now available Free to use at websites, in newsletters, memos, the local press, letters to parents and more. This is a very popular Website. If you can't get in bookmark the page and try again later.
There is no school bus driver shortage!
Properly train, effective support and pay that retains. |
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william
Top Member
USA
1912 Posts |
Posted - 04/05/2007 : 7:51:26 PM
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There is absolutely no exemption to Section 22112 of the CA Vehicle Code. I can categorically state that if this law is not being complied with, the driver is simply being negligent, because as you can see by reading Sandra's thread, there is no provision for deviating from this procedure. I don't think any school district superintendant would be dumb enough to issue an exemption given the gravity of potential consequences.
Anyone who drives a school bus in this state will never receive certification until they can perform this procedure to the satisfaction of the CHP, whether an original or renewing driver.
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William |
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Thomas Ford 85-16
Top Member
USA
4177 Posts |
Posted - 04/06/2007 : 05:18:54 AM
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The toddler was not a passenger on the bus, so the driver was not in any way responsbile for crossing that child. I'd imagine though that it could be proved that had the driver crossed the passenger who was getting off, then this would not have been able to happen since the driver would've not been able to get back into the driver's seat in time to pull away and run over the toddler.
If this was proven, do you think the driver would be held responsible for the death, or would he only be able to be cited for not following the law by the letter? (Since, afterall, the CHP already ruled that the toddler was partially at fault for not yeilding to traffic.)
I'd like to know what the lawsuit is going to accomplish. If it's going to be proactive and helpful in improving school bus safety, training, and procedures in that district, then go for it. But if it's they're just suing to hold the driver responsible, what's the point of ruining a second life? I'm sure he feels badly enough already. I hope that doesn't sound insensitive...
"This whole thing reeks of negligence." "It's a no-brainer." I'd like to know what this lawyer has done thus far to improve and be active in school bus safety if he's so sure about what the job entails. Everyone must expect school bus drivers to follow the laws and procedures, but making statements like that don't help the industry and are just meant to stir up emotions and point to a bad guy.
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news
Top Member
Canada
2951 Posts |
Posted - 06/19/2008 : 5:50:44 PM
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Parent's Of 2-Year-Old Killed By Bus Settle With EOC
June 19/2008 - KMPH Fox 26, CA
During the two-week trial, testimony was heard which backed up the parents claims that the defendants had failed to comply with a federal regulation that requires Head Start children to be dropped off on their side of the street, and with a California state law that requires bus drivers to escort children in 8th grade and below across the street.
full story
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IrishMike
Active Member
United States
31 Posts |
Posted - 06/19/2008 : 6:45:20 PM
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| Sad situation no matter who is at fault. In my state{KY.} If transporting a child that age {4} there is a monitor on the bus for children that age/grade and the monitor escorts the child off the bus and turns the child over to the adult {parent/gaurdian}. The bus under no circumstances does a bus move until all students are safely across the road. WE make every effort to have right hand stops, and it is aginst the law here for a driver to leave the bus with any students on board bar a few rare circumstances { monitor on board and emergency happens, etc.} Driver is to secure bus if an event comes up that they must exit bus{ step off to double check if you are un-sure about some one around bus, such as droped back pack, etc. Mike |
KY. School bus driver |
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CA - 2-year-old Hit and Killed by School Bus
