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5 Kids Have Been Struck And Died At School Bus Stops This Week — ‘Distracted Driving Plays A Huge Role’

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An accident at a school bus stop that left seven adults and children injured in Tampa, Florida, Thursday is the latest in a string of school bus stop incidents this week that have left at least four kids dead.

Two adults and five children were injured when a Ford Escort collided with pedestrians near a Tampa school bus stop Thursday, reported CNN. Although none of the victims’ injuries are regarded as life-threatening, one of the children is in critical condition, reported CNN.

#BREAKING: A car hits two adults and three children at a school bus stop in Tampa, Florida this morning. One child reportedly in critical condition. This is a LIVE picture from the scene. #2NewsAM pic.twitter.com/IyBQgZetmJ

— Holly Menino (@KUTVHolly) November 1, 2018

“Hours ago, they were trick-or-treating. Now, they’re at the hospital,” Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan told WFLA.

Other school bus stop tragedies this week include a crash in Indiana Tuesday morning that left three dead plus more incidents in Mississippi and Pennsylvania, according to CNN.

The driver of the Ford Escort in Tampa was moving “at a high rate of speed,” but authorities in Tampa said it is unknown whether the driver was speeding, according to CNN.

The adults and children were rushed to the hospital. Three 6-year-olds, a 9-year-old and a 12-year-old were injured, reported WFLA.

The driver, a 47-year-old man, had not been charged as of Thursday night, according to CNN.

The crash in Rochester, Indiana, killed three siblings as they boarded their school bus and left another boy injured Tuesday. Alyssa Shepherd, 24, was driving the pickup truck that struck and killed Alivia Stahl, 9, and her twin brothers Xzavier and Mason Ingle, both 6. Shepherd has been charged with reckless homicide, reported ABC News.

Just before a truck ran into kids waiting at a bus stop in Rochester, Indiana, a 9-year-old shielded her twin brothers, police say.

Now, authorities have identified the three siblings and the alleged driver. https://t.co/UMPB3gyAIV

— The Sacramento Bee (@sacbee_news) October 31, 2018

A truck struck Dalen Thomas, 9, as he was boarding a school bus in Pratts, Mississippi, Wednesday morning. He died of his injuries after being airlifted to a children’s hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, reported ABC 7. Hunter Newman, 22, was charged with aggravated assault in the incident, officials told ABC 7.

“This is a huge problem we’ve been experiencing all around Mississippi,” Captain John Poulos of Mississippi Highway Patrol Public Affairs told CBS News Thursday. “Distracted driving plays a huge role with stopped school buses.”

A hit-and-run claimed the life of a 7-year-old boy as he waited for his school bus in Franklin Township, Pennsylvania, Thursday morning, reported ABC News. A school bus driver found the boy fatally injured, and the driver accused of hitting the boy has been interviewed, according to ABC News.

A 5-year-old boy was hit and injured while crossing the street to board his school bus in Tallahassee, Florida, Wednesday morning, reported The Tallahassee Democrat. His injuries “were non-life threatening and he was responsive when taken to the hospital,” reported The Democrat.

“This is any superintendent’s worst fear when you put 12,000 kids on school buses every day,” Leon County School Superintendent Rocky Hanna, who came to the scene, told The Democrat. “You hope and pray they all make it to school safely and return home safely.”

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