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SEARCHA driver for East Baton Rouge Parish Public Schools is fired after apparently leaving the bus while a 9-year-old student was still on board.
A driver for East Baton Rouge (La.) Parish Public Schools is fired after reportedly leaving the bus while a 9-year-old student was still on board. File photo courtesy John Horton
BATON ROUGE, La. — A school bus driver here has been fired after reportedly leaving a student on a bus on Thursday, according to school district officials.
East Baton Rouge Parish Public Schools said that a 9-year-old student from Greenbrier Elementary School was left on board at the end of his bus route, WBRZ reports.
The boy’s mother, Betty Champagne, told WBRZ that her son managed to get off the bus, which was left in a Walmart parking lot, and tried to walk home.
Champagne added that someone spotted her son and picked him up before contacting authorities.
A spokesperson from the district told WAFB that "the safety and security of all students is our top priority," and that the driver responsible has been fired.
Last month, another driver for the district was fired for a similar incident in which a student was left on a bus, according to the news source.
The district told WAFB that it will be requiring additional training for drivers, and the focus will be on the importance of checking buses before getting off.
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