Mom Shares Horrifying Story Of Daughter Nearly Dying On First Day Of School
By Dave Basner
August 30, 2018
It's back to school time, when children return to the classroom, and to the daily routines that get them there and back for the next nine months. Most students take the bus, which can be a little scary for parents with young kids who are doing it for the first time. Usually, there is nothing to worry about, but one mom lived through a nightmare on her daughter's first day of school, and she tweeted about it as a warning to other parents.
In a Twitter thread, a mom named Coley, who lives in what she calls a "small farming town about an hour outside of St. Louis," described how a bus driver's negligence nearly killed her five-year-old daughter.
My daughter's bus driver nearly killed her on the first day of kindergarten so here's a PSA for all parents of young bus riders.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
This happened today.
{thread/story}
My daughter, who is 5 and slightly developmentally delayed was trapped alone on a bus parked at the bus depot for 3 hours in near 90 degree weather.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
The bus driver DID NOT check whatsoever when he pulled in. He just got off. She tried to get his attention but failed. She knows to stay in her seat so that's where she stayed. FOR 3 FUCKING HOURS. ALONE. IN THE SUN.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
I'd had an off feeling since I put her on the bus this morning. It's our first regular bus. Will she find the right seat? Be able to get off the bus okay? Will the older kids be nice to her?
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
As far as Coley knew, everything was fine in the morning, 30 minutes after putting her daughter on the bus.
I take her school paperwork in at 9. They don't say she's absent. I figure everything is fine. They'd call if something were wrong, right?
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
It turned out though, all was not well.
I wake my hubby up close to 11. I miss a call from school. The school says she's absent and they want to know if she's okay because I didnt call her in. I freak out.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
I PUT HER ON THE BUS AT 7:30 WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S ABSENT?!
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
They reassure me she's likely in class, several busses were late this morning after attendance was taken. They're going to go check. They'll call me right back.
I expect a call in 5 to 10 minutes.
I. WAIT. ALMOST. 40. MINUTES. And this time it isn't the secretary. It's the superintendent of the bus depot. And he's PISSED. My child. My FIVE YEAR OLD CHILD was left alone on the bus. She appears okay but I need to meet them at school. I bolt. I already had keys in my hand.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
I beat them there. I watch my child walk into the school red, dripping wet, and cradling a water bottle. I almost cry. My baby appears okay. She says she has a stomachache but is okay.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
The bus drivers are supposed to do a seat check before leaving. He didnt. My daughter didn't know when to get off. No other k-1st graders (kids at her school) on this bus. This should never have happened.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
And then he tells me what I hadn't even grasped yet. He had left her there, alone, in the heat, since 8:30. They found her after 11:30. I am devastated and crying on the inside. 3 hours. Alone. In almost 90 degree weather. Locked. On a bus.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
Bus driver is fired (obviously). They put steps in place to make sure my kid can ride the bus safely. The nurse tells me that, shockingly, my child is just FINE. I let her stay the rest of the day.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
They give her lots of water. The girls who found her had ice water on hand and were dousing towels with it to put on her body. They're offering her food. She tells me she got hungry and is sorry she ate some of her lunch on the bus. I nearly cry. I reassure her it's okay.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
I ask her about her day when she gets home and she tells me about the bus. My heart breaks when she tells me that the only time she got scared was when she got cold. She wanted me. She cried for me. I hold her extra tight tonight.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
My child should. Not be alive right now. Kids die after an hour in a hot car. My child survived 3 and only got a stomachache. My child should be dead. If I hadn't of packed her 2 drinks in her lunch she WOULD HAVE DIED. Today we hold her close.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
So tonight I play with my girl. I remind her that if, by some miniscule chance you get left on the bus, to honk that horn until someone comes. And in the morning we figure out a new plan for school.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
She's okay. Somehow, she's absolutely fine. Thank you, Lord!
Coley wanted everyone who read about what happened to her to take something from it:
Remind your kids bus drivers to CHECK EVERY SEAT BEFORE LEAVING. PLEASE. My child survived 3 hours but yours might not. Please. Take the extra 2 minutes. Learn from us. We were almost a tragedy. A preventable tragedy. Please remind them.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
As for Coley's daughter, thankfully she is better and the experience wasn't as traumatic for her as it was for her mother:
She's doing great! She was closely monitored by a nurse practitioner yesterday and shows no signs of heat exhaustion, stroke, or severe dehydration. She's still the same happy, energetic kid that got on the bus 24 hours ago.
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
My kiddo (likely) made it to school safe and sound this morning. Her rescuer yesterday drove a bus that picked her up while our normal bus was 30 minutes late. Thanks for all the support yall. Kiddo is PERFECTLY healthy and very happy. No side effects. 🙏🙏💜💜💜
— Coley (@happycloudbooks) August 29, 2018
Make sure your kids' bus driver knows they must check the seats every time they park.
Photo Credit: Getty