‘It was a mess’: School bus hits woman, 5 cars in Boston after dropping kids off for class

BOSTON — An investigation is underway after a bus struck a pedestrian and five cars outside of a school in Boston moments after the children on board were dropped off for class Thursday morning.

Officers responding to a report of a person struck in the area of the Henry Grew School at 40 Gordon Avenue in the city’s Hyde Park section just after 8:15 a.m. learned a school bus had struck several cars, as well as a pedestrian who was crossing the street, according to the Boston Police Department.

Michelle Legitte told reporters that it was her daughter-in-law who got hit by the bus after dropping her daughter off for school.

“I found out that my daughter-in-law got hit by the bus. The bus slammed into other cars. It was a mess out here this morning,” Legitte explained. “The accelerator on the bus broke and the bus driver couldn’t stop the bus. He had no choice but to turn the bus off to stop the bus. By the time he did that we had a mess out here. The cars were all piled up and damaged.”

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Hyde Park (Max Baker)

Legitte said her daughter-in-law is “good” and that she initially feared that something had happened to her granddaughter.

At least one other person was injured in the crash. Legitte noted that she believes a boy in one of the cars may have also been hit by the bus.

Students who had been on the bus were just dropped off for class just before the crash occurred.

Video from the scene shared with Boston 25 News showed one person on the ground in the street and a black SUV resting on top of two other vehicles not far from where the bus came to a rest.

Naomi Ramirez’s surveillance camera caught the aftermath of the accident — including the injured woman lying in the street.

“I heard a big baboom, baboom,” she said. “Like it just happened all at once. It was such a loud noise that I thought a car hit the house.”

SUV left resting on top of other cars after crash involving school bus in Boston Credit: Naomi R

In a letter sent to the Grew school community, Principal Christina Michel wrote, “This morning, there was a crash in front of the school involving a school bus as well as passenger vehicles. A pedestrian was injured in the accident...A Boston Public Schools crisis team is on-site to support students and staff who might have witnessed the accident.”

Michel added, “We understand that this incident may be concerning to you, and we want to assure you that we are taking all necessary steps to ensure the safety of our students.”

Mayor Michelle Wu is promising a full investigation.

“I’m very thankful that there were no children or students on the bus or involved here and everybody is safe and recovering,” Wu told Boston 25 News.

Boston police, Boston Emergency Services, and the school’s transportation road safety supervisor assisted in the emergency response.

There were no additional details immediately available.

An investigation is ongoing.

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