Fatima Muhammad
Saudi Gazette
JEDDAH — The Jeddah Directorate of Education has opened an investigation into the death of a six-year-old boy who was left asleep in a school bus when all students disembarked and the driver did not bother to check whether anyone was left inside.
“After investigations by security officials and the authorities concerned, decisions will be taken which might include revoking the license of the school,” Abdul Majid Al-Ghamdi, spokesman of the Directorate of Education in Jeddah, told Saudi Gazette on Wednesday.
He said the directorate has documented a number of violations by the school, and will be submitting a report to the Ministry of Labor. Any school, he said, which commits violations may face closure.
Asked what will happen to students already registered in the school in case of closure, Al-Ghamdi said they will take “the necessary decisions” regarding the students.
Abdul Malik Al-Awad, a KG3 student of a private school in Jeddah’s Al-Rehab district, was fast asleep when the bus arrived at the school on Monday morning. All the students disembarked when they reached their school except him.
The bus driver did not notice that the student was still in his seat when he drove the bus to the parking place where it remained until the school closed for the day. When the driver was ready to take the students back to their homes he noticed that Al-Awad was still in his seat but it was too late. He was already lifeless.
Yahya Al-Awad, the student’s uncle, held the school responsible for the tragic death of his nephew.
He said Abdul Malik was not suffering from any illness or health issues when he went to his school in the morning.
Malik Bin Talib, the head of the private school committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that school bus drivers must sign official papers detailing their responsibilities that are not only driving but also checking the vehicle before parking.
He said a supervisor must check all the school buses to make sure that all students have disembarked and must call parents in case any child is missing.
