Autistic boy, 11, found walking in street after bus breaks down

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — An Osceola couple said their son’s life was endangered by a careless bus driver who left him behind.

“I see your son getting out of the driver’s side with a book bag, walking in the street," said tow truck driver Billy Ross, who found 11-year-old Michael Rivas Monday morning.

Ross had come to the road in front of Chestnut Elementary School to service the flat tire on one of the buses for Esther’s School. While there, he found Michael walking into the street, with no adults around.

He quickly realized the boy was nonverbal and called the school to figure out what he should do.

In Ross' body-cam video, you can hear him call the Esther's School Haines City campus and talk to the principal, who asked him to secure Michael and keep him safe until she could get there. Ross said he repeatedly had to keep Michael from running into the road until he was able to coax the boy back onto the bus.

“This a busy street," Ross said. “I don’t know how much traffic you see now, but in the morning, cars are running up and down."

Michael’s parents were horrified when they learned what had happened. They were even more shocked to find out that police were never called and the school simply trusted Ross to stay with the boy.

“Thank God he didn’t run away to the woods or something or a car run him over or something worse could’ve happened,” said Hector Rivas, Michael’s father. “He could have set off the brakes on the bus. The bus could have rolled down.”

Michael’s parents are questioning whether the school has a policy of conducting head counts when moving students.

They also said a school that specifically serves children with special needs should never rely on only a driver to assist the children. Hector Rivas said there used to be two adults on every bus, including the driver, and he believes the incident involving his son could have been prevented had there been two adults there.

“How is it going to get fixed?” Rivas said. “How (do) we prevent this from happening again to someone else?”

Rivas said he and his wife are hesitant to put Michael back on the bus until they receive better answers from the school.

“I don’t feel (as) comfortable as before,” said Rivas. “I mean that trust that you had is lost.”

WFTV spoke to the school’s principal, Natasha Griffin, twice.

She said the school is investigating the incident and expects to meet with the parents Tuesday, but she wouldn't comment any further.

Cox Media Group