Missouri First-Grader Fatally Struck by School Bus on Last Day of School Before Christmas Break

The school bus that hit an unidentified Missouri first-grader near the town of Festus on Tuesday is pictured, stopped, after the accident. An investigation into the incident is still underway, and the driver has yet to be identified or charged

A first grader from Plattin Primary School south of Festus was fatally struck by a school bus Tuesday afternoon, school officials and authorities said.

The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. near the intersection of Oakland Hill and Oakland Manor in the Oakland Mobile Home Park near Festus, which is in the Jefferson R-7 School District.

The 6-year-old boy had just exited the bus, which was pulling away with other students aboard, when he was struck, said Trooper Scott Roettger of the Missouri Highway Patrol. A highway patrol crash investigations team was at the site and speaking with the driver and any other witnesses to determine how the incident occurred, Roettger said.

Tuesday was the last day of school before winter break in the district.

“This morning we were singing Christmas carols together,” said Superintendent Clint Johnston, his voice breaking with emotion. “This is a bad day; it’s a bad day for our school, it’s a bad day for our community. We’re hurting.”

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SOURCE: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Robert Patrick