Local

Brevard County bus driver lets 5-year-old girl off on busy highway

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A Brevard County father wants answers after a school bus driver left his 5-year-old daughter on the side of a busy highway.

The school district said it is now taking steps to make sure it never happens again.

Channel 9 found out it was the bus driver’s first time driving the route, and that the bus driver was a substitute.

It’s still unclear why the driver thought it was OK to leave the young girl on the side of U.S.1.

Tyele Ownes, 5, boarded the bus at Coquina Elementary School in Titusville on Monday, but she never made it to her stop.

Instead, the bus driver let her off early and on a busy road because she was on the wrong bus.

The child’s aunt happened to drive by and spotted her niece.

“My sister called. She was like, ‘Well, I just found baby walking on U.S. 1.,’” said the child’s father, Tracy Owens.

Brevard County Public Schools sent Channel 9 a statement about the incident.

The district admitted the girl got on the wrong bus and got off at the wrong stop.

The district said the bus driver was a substitute and was driving the route for the first time.

School officials said they plan to review kindergarten dismissal procedures with all bus drivers.

Those procedures include making sure children leave the bus stop only with approved adults.

“It was really crazy. It was scary, more than anything,” said Taylor Owens.

He said it’s difficult to think about what could have happened to his little girl.

“What if the wrong person would have got a hold of her and took her off? Anything could have happened to her,” he said.

Channel 9 reported Mike Manzoni asked district officials if there are plans to fire the bus driver.

The district said it can’t comment on a personnel investigation until 15 days after it is complete.