A 12-year-old girl has died after she collided with a school bus while riding on a motorized scooter with another child in Haverhill, Massachusetts, authorities say.
The collision happened Thursday at about 4 p.m. at the intersection of Portland Street and 5th Avenue.
Haverhill police said both children were seriously injured and taken to a local hospital. The girl who died attended Haverhill Public Schools.
Her identity has not been released as family members are notified.
Haverhill police had said Thursday that two children were taken from the scene to area hospitals for treatment of serious injuries. There has been no update provided on the condition of the second child who was injured, and their age hasn’t been revealed either.
According to witnesses at the scene it was one motorized scooter with two females on it that reportedly was traveling from Portland Street onto Fifth Avenue when they struck the school bus.
One bystander said the scooter appeared to wobble right before the collision, while another child at the scene recalled seeing the girls moving quickly moments before they struck the bus.
Haverhill is mourning the death of a 12-year-old girl who was struck by a Head Start school bus while riding a motorized scooter with another child who was seriously injured, officials said Friday.
On Friday,
Haverhill schools Superintendent Margaret Marotta said in a message to families that the district had “experienced a heartbreaking tragedy with the loss of one of our students in a scooter crash.” “Our hearts are with the student’s family, friends, classmates, and everyone affected by this unimaginable loss,” Marotta said. “We also keep the other student involved in our thoughts and wish them strength and healing.”
Marotta asked the public to respect the privacy of the 12-year-old’s family as they grieve an unimaginable loss.
Haverhill schools Supt. Margaret Marotta said grief-counseling will be available at the middle school Friday and Monday.
The superintendent also urged families to discuss scooter safety with their children.
“Many young people ride friends’ scooters or ride together, often without fully appreciating the risks involved,” she said. “These conversations could save a life.”
“This tragedy is a sobering reminder of the growing presence of motorized scooters in Haverhill’s neighborhoods. While these vehicles are widely available and, in many cases, unregulated, they can pose very real dangers—especially for young adolescents who may not yet have the experience, judgment, or understanding of traffic laws needed to operate them safely,” she wrote.
The chief executive of the company that operates Greater Haverhill’s Head Start confirmed that one of its buses was involved. “On behalf of the entire team of dedicated staff…, we are heartbroken to learn that one of our buses was involved in a collision that resulted in the death of a child and injuries to another child,” Kerri Sheeran Perry, CEO of Community Action, Inc., said in a statement Friday.
“As parents, teachers, caregivers and friends who have dedicated our lives to serving children, all of us at CAI understand that there is no pain equivalent to the loss of a child,” Sheeran Perry said. “Our focus at this time is on helping the families in any way that we can and on helping our community, staff, and students deal with this unspeakable tragedy.” All of the company’s drivers “undergo extensive training and are fully screened prior to employment,” she said.
“The safety of our students and members of our community is our top priority,” Sheeran Perry said. “Most of our transportation employees have been with us for decades. Our transportation team responded to the scene immediately, and they have been fully cooperative with the ongoing investigation.”
Community members gathered at the site Friday to mourn.
“I feel upset, but I also know she’s in good hands, so she’s up there,” said Ave Leigh Gumbs, a friend of the victim’s. “She always had my back, like, whenever I was upset or something, or someone was picking on me.”
“It was just really heartbreaking to hear that this happened because it’s the neighborhood and it could’ve been any one of our children, you know? They all play together and they go to the park here,” said Chanel McClurkin, the mother of one of the victim’s friends.
The crash is now renewing the conversation in the community about the safety of electric scooters and bicycles on roads. “We just have to pay attention more to the roads, you know, with the kids on these scooters and vice versa. These kids need to watch out for the vehicles,” said Jaccie Brown, who lives in the neighborhood. “I hope that something gets done about it because there’s too many deaths,” said Barry Burns, who lives in the area.
On June 16, a man in his 50s was seriously hurt when he was struck by a vehicle in Haverhill while riding an e-bike in the area of Amesbury Road around 8:20 a.m.
In the viral moment Thursday afternoon, two girls were riding a motorized scooter together at the intersection when their path crossed with the Head Start school bus. The scooter appeared to wobble just before impact, according to witnesses. Both children were immediately transported to Lawrence General Hospital with serious injuries. One girl, the 12-year-old student from Haverhill Public Schools, was pronounced dead at the hospital. The second child, whose condition was not immediately disclosed, sustained serious injuries and was still hospitalized.
The investigation is now ongoing by multiple agencies including the Massachusetts State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, Haverhill Police, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
No charges have been filed, and prosecutors did not name the bus driver or say what type of bus was involved.