School district offers resources after child fatally hit by bus in South Jersey

The Greenwich Township School District is offering resources to help the community mourn the death of a child who was struck by a school bus in South Jersey on Friday afternoon.

On Saturday, May 9, Ryan Hudson, superintendent of the Greenwich Township School District, addressed the community in a heartfelt message that was posted on Facebook. In that post, Hudson said the district’s primary focus is to bring comfort and support for students, staff and families who are affected by the child’s tragic death.

“I want to start by expressing my sincere and deepest condolences to the family affected by the tragedy of yesterday,” Hudson said.

The incident happened near the intersection of Bennett Avenue and Ashton Drive in Greenwich Township around 3:40 p.m. on Friday, May 8, police said. According to officials, the child was getting off of the bus when he was hit.

Neighbors gave the child CPR at the scene before he was taken to a nearby hospital where he died, police told NBC10.

The district’s support services started Saturday morning at Clonmell United Methodist Church, where members of the community were expected to gather to seek comfort and support with the help of an on-site mental health professional and a therapy dog.

Moreover, starting on Monday, Hudson said both district schools will have mental health professionals available to provide support to the entire staff and students. They will also have therapy dogs on-site who will provide additional emotional support.

“Our schools are an extension of our community, and we are committed to being a source of strength and support for your children. If your child needs anything at all, please contact your school’s main office starting on Monday, and we will do our very best to provide the care and resources they need,” Hudson wrote.

Neighbors said they’re heartbroken and that the boy was beloved in the community.

“I saw a bunch of people hovering around the kid,” one neighbor said. “Two people, one was a nurse, actually both were nurses, did CPR on him.”

The Greenwich Township Police Detective Unit is investigating this crash.

In addition, Holcomb, the bus company involved, said in a statement that it is launching an internal review to determine what happened and prevent future tragedies.

Read the full statement below:

“The Holcomb organization is deeply concerned about the serious accident involving one of our school buses earlier today. Our thoughts are with everyone affected, and we are focused on supporting them in every way we can. We are fully cooperating with all relevant authorities as they work to determine the circumstances surrounding this incident. Safety has always been our highest priority, and we take this event extremely seriously. In addition to the official investigation, we have launched our own internal review to understand exactly what happened and to ensure that every appropriate measure is taken moving forward. We are committed to transparency and to doing everything necessary to prevent an incident like this from happening again,” Frank Patrinicola, Director of Safety and Risk, wrote.