Meadowbrook School parents want solutions after pickup truck slams into school bus; 20 kids treated
EAST MEADOW, N.Y. - Less than a week after a school bus crash hospitalized several people in Westchester County, it happened again, this time in Nassau County, Long Island, where 20 kids were sent to the hospital.
The investigation continued Tuesday into what went wrong.
The drop-off at Meadowbrook School in East Meadow, Long Island was filled with gratitude Tuesday morning. Parents know Monday's bus crash could have been so much worse.
"My kids were playing, and I just heard a loud boom," said parent Maria Rivas.
Rivas said she and other witnesses were in shock when they saw the crash at first, but then quickly jumped into action. Teachers took the lead.
"The teachers came out and they started pulling the kids from the school bus," Rivas said. "Some of them were crying. We were just saying that everything is going to be OK."
Investigators say the crash happened Monday afternoon around 3:45 p.m., during school dismissal. The school bus, full of kids, was slowly exiting the school parking lot onto Old Westbury Road when a pickup truck crashed into it. Twenty kids were taken to the hospital but none have serious injuries.
"When the car hit the bus, I went up," one student said. "It was, like, kids screaming, crying, because they wanted their parents, and their sisters and their brothers."
The driver of the pickup truck had to be extricated from the vehicle, but we are told he too will be OK.
This comes after a crash on April 26 - just last week - when police say an unlicensed 16-year-old was behind the wheel of a Honda Accord in New Castle, Westchester County. Police say the 16-year-old lost control while rounding a curve, slamming head-on into a school bus and injuring at least nine people.
On Long Island, parents hate that something like this happened again.
"A bunch of kids went to the hospital. As a parent, that's scary. Especially going into school. We have so many things to worry about in the world today," East Meadow parent Chris Sweeney said.
While the investigation continues into how the crash happened, parents say more safety measures should be put in place.
"Some cameras wouldn't be a bad thing, or maybe speed bumps here in front of the school," East Meadow parent Michelle Vulpi said.
Some other parents say they've also been reaching out to local leaders to get flashing stop signs installed in the area.