Boy, 8, hit by car while getting on bus

An 8-year-old boy suffered injuries not believed to be life-threatening Tuesday morning when he was hit by a car while getting on the bus in Pulaski County.

Pulaski County sheriff's office Capt. Carl Minden said it happened about 6:45 a.m. on Colonel Glenn Road just west of Rocky Lane.

Minden said the bus was stopping with its flashing lights on when the boy, a second-grade student at Chenal Elementary School, was hit in the traffic lane and thrown 33 feet into a ditch. He was taken to Arkansas Children's Hospital for treatment.

Karen Wilson, 55, of Little Rock, the driver of the car, was cited, Minden said. Wilson told deputies she did not see the bus' flashing lights until it was too late to stop and that she did not see the child until she hit him, according to a Pulaski County sheriff's office report.

Wilson said she was not speeding and was not distracted when the accident happened, the report states.

Deborah Roush, a spokesman for the Pulaski County Special School District, said the bus had not yet enabled its stop sign, but that its flashing lights were going and the driver should have stopped. Roush said the core problem is nothing new for the district.

"This is something that we experience every day in our school district — not as far as an injuries — but as far as bus drivers witnessing a vehicle pass their lights or stop signs," she said. "It happens every day. And it's very concerning to us. And it seems to be happening more and more."

The bus driver told deputies she had engaged both the warning lights and the stop sign on the bus 300 feet from the bus stop and that both were working. The driver said she noticed Wilson driving towards the bus "at a high rate of speed" and honked the bus horn and waved her arms to get Wilson's attention, the report states.

The child's father and another witness said they also saw the bus' warning lights and stop sign out before the bus stopped, according to the report.

Roush said that buses are equipped with cameras and that drivers are encouraged to report motorists who disobey the bus stop signs and lights. She said the collision Tuesday was likely captured on the bus video, though it will not be released pending further investigation.

Roush said motorists should also be aware that buses will remain on the road into June as the Pulaski County district and many others across the state have extended their school years because of earlier cancellations for inclement winter weather.

Map

Colonel Glenn Road and Rocky Lane

Colonel Glenn Road and Rocky Lane

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