The investigation continues into the death of 5-year-old Bissiah Hedges, who was killed early Monday morning when his Macon County, Alabama school bus driver struck him as she pulled away from the stop.
The Alabama Department of Education refused to comment on the specifics of the incident as the state police investigate the causes. But local press reports quote Macon County Sheriff Andre Brunson as saying the incident occurred about 6:30 a.m. local time in Fort Davis, about 15 miles when Hedges had bent down in front of the bus to pick up his backpack after it apparently snagged on the crossing gate and fell to the ground.
WDAM and other media outlets have reported that the driver told authorities that she assumed the boy was not coming to school that day when his older siblings boarded the bus without him present. She added that she checked the entrance door again for Bissiah to step onto the bus before pulling away from the stop.
The sun rose at approximately 6:53 a.m. that day. When asked if darkness could have been a factor, Kevin Snowden, the state director of pupil transportation at the Alabama Department of Education, told STN that he could not comment with an investigation ongoing. “I really don’t want to speculate on what the true cause of the accident might be,” he said. “It’s just unfortunate it even happened.”
Snowden added that the state and districts “try to teach all the best practices in the world.”
The investigation will include working with the district to test the bus driver for drugs and alcohol as well as a mechanical inspection of the bus. WDAM reported that the bus driver has been placed on leave.
“There are no words that can adequately express our sorrow at the loss of our precious George W. Carver Elementary School student, 5-year old Bissiah Hedges,” read a statement on the Macon County Schools website.
