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Bus driver, supervisors fired after 4-year-old left on bus in North Kingstown – NECN

Last Tuesday, a 4-year-old child was left unattended on a bus in North Kingstown, Rhode Island. The bus driver and attendants were fired as a result.

Police said the boy was enrolled in the extended school year program and was inadvertently left in a minivan. He was taken back to the bus station and left there while the driver and chaperones left, NBC10 Boston affiliate WJAR reported.

The boy eventually got off the bus and an employee found him, officials said. He was not injured.

According to North Kingstown Chief Inspector Kenneth Duva, an internal investigation found that the bus driver and bus conductors failed to follow mandatory safety procedures and have since been fired, WJAR reported.

“This disturbing situation was both shocking and unacceptable, and does not reflect the standards of safety and care we uphold in our district,” Duva wrote in a letter to the school community. “We deeply regret that this incident occurred.”

The director also said the district will implement new measures, including mandatory retraining for drivers and supervisors, expanded safety checks and technological safety enhancements.

Administrators at the North Kingstown school said the state Department of Children, Youth and Families had been notified of the incident, WJAR reported.

Police have said no criminal charges will be filed.