A Jefferson County school bus driver has been relieved of his duty pending an investigation, after allegedly leaving a five-year-old onboard for hours at Grantswood Community School, NBC Chicago reports.
Tayanna McKenzie, mother of 5-year-old Messiah, indicated to reporters that her son is doing better.
She described that her child was traumatized after being kept in a climate of 14-18 degrees inside the school bus. According to his mother, Messiah boarded the bus 8:40 a.m. Thursday. McKenzie then received a phone call after 3 p.m. informing her that Messiah was left on the bus.
Walter Gansoulin, Grantswood Community School deputy superintendent, said officials are reviewing school bus footage to see what occurred onboard. Drivers are mandated to do a thorough walk through to ensure every child gets off at their stop.
“I’m a parent, myself. I know how it is and being an employee of Jefferson County, we take this very seriously. All our drivers and employees are trained to walk throughout the bus to perform a safety check and that’s our expectation,” said Gonsoulin.
Gansoulin says the school district will be transparent as the investigation continues and swift action will be taken if they find the bus driver at fault.
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