Kindergarten child on the way to school with his mother hit and killed by school bus

MAMARONECK, NY – A kindergarten student was struck and killed by a school bus in suburban New York on Thursday as he and his mother walked to school, authorities said.

The accident occurred shortly after 8:30 a.m. in the village of Mamaroneck in Westchester County.

The boy and his mother were walking to Mamaroneck Avenue Elementary School when they were hit by a yellow van.

The child was killed and the mother was taken to a hospital for treatment, Mamaroneck Union Free School District officials said in a statement.

“There is nothing worse for a community than the loss of a human life, and we know this news is deeply saddening to everyone in the Mamaroneck and Larchmont communities,” school district officials said.

The Journal News reports that a Royal Coach Lines minibus was parked at the scene of the accident about half a block from the school. A yellow backpack was found about 20 feet behind it. The bus was later towed, and the backpack was removed and placed in a police vehicle.

School district officials said counseling would be offered at the school on Friday.

Royal Coach Lines, a regional school bus operator, did not respond to an email seeking comment on the accident.