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PHOENIX (KPHO/KTVK) — Melissa Hansen felt a big sigh of relief when she picked up her kids at the neighborhood school bus stop Friday.
She was especially happy to see her 5-year-old son Davion.
“When they are that little, you can’t turn your eye for a second,” said Hansen. “You have to take precautions to make sure they are in the right place at the right time, because anything can happen to them.”
Hansen said that Davion and his four brothers and sisters had their first day at Desert Mountain School in north Phoenix Thursday.
Mom waited at the school bus stop near their house around 3:15 p.m. for her kids to be dropped off.
But when the bus arrived, there was no sign of Davion.
He had been dropped off someplace else.
“My heart just dropped,” said Hansen. “I didn’t know what was going on.”
Hansen called the school repeatedly to find her son.
An hour later, Davion was brought home.
According to Hansen, Davion got off the bus with another kindergartner at a nearby apartment complex.
Someone from the school had gone back to the apartment complex to find the little boy.
Hansen said that her son was hot, confused, and had no idea where he was.
“He said ‘Mommy, I was hot,'” said Hansen. “‘And I was knocking and knocking.'”
Monica Allread with the Deer Valley School District released this statement:
“We have learned that our bus driver did not follow the procedure to ensure the kindergarten student was getting off at the correct stop and will face appropriate discipline. We have apologized profusely to the mother for this mistake.”
“In addition, we will have the kindergarten child sit with an older sibling while traveling on the bus.”
“They have a list of their names and their stops right in front of them,” said Hansen. “They should always check and verify they are in the right place.”
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