Father says 6-year-old dead after she was left on daycare bus
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A father says his 6-year-old, non-verbal autistic child died after being left on a daycare bus Thursday.
Bryan Jones said his daughter Winter rode a bus from a Cordova daycare to and from Macon-Hall Elementary, and Thursday morning was never taken off the bus when she arrived at the school.
“And she died with an internal temperature of 109,” said Bryan Jones, Winter’s father.
“All I know is she is supposed to go there and then from there get transported to her school. And somehow the ball was dropped and she never even made it into the school,” said Winter’s uncle Christopher Jones. “No one knew that she was still on the bus until they got back on the bus and got ready to go and pick up the students from school.”
Play VideoChristoper Jones
Memphis Police confirmed that at 3:23, a female juvenile was found in need of medical assistance at an address on Walnut Knoll. She was taken in critical condition to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Thursday evening, crime scene tape was strung up across Walnut Knoll, where a small bus marked Kid University was parked in front of the Kid University daycare.
A person who answered the phone at the daycare hung up.
Memphis Shelby County Schools said Thursday they were aware of the incident and were looking into it.
Shabnam Manhas, who works at a business across from Kid University, said screams could be heard coming from the daycare Thursday.
“Our office is right opposite the child care, and we heard some screams, someone yelling. We couldn’t figure out what it was that was going on,” Manhas said. “There was a woman on the ground just crying a lot, and we kept on trying to ask what happened, and she was just crying, and we tried to get her up. She just could not talk.”
The little girl’s uncle said there is no excuse for what happened.
“You would think that these establishments would have protocols in place to make sure nothing like this ever happens, ever happens. Like I said, clearly, that wasn’t the case this time,” Christopher said. “I just I hate it had to be my niece. I feel so bad for my brother.
Play VideoChristopher Jones
Christopher is also the father of a non-verbal autistic boy. He said that with his niece’s condition, she never had a chance to be found.
“She couldn’t advocate for herself. She couldn’t open her mouth and say, hey, I’m still on the bus or anything, nothing like that,” said Christopher. “I’m standing here sweating. So, I can only imagine her being enclosed in a bus for so long with no windows down, no doors open, no nothing.”
Parents with children at “Kid University” were shocked at what happened.
“That’s sad. I feel sad for that child and that family. Yea, that’s really sad,” said Breanna Watts has child attending Kid University.
This wouldn’t be the first incident of a child’s death on a daycare van in the Memphis area.
It happened in Memphis in 2022, and West Memphis in 2017.
The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services tells WREG that DCS is involved in the investigation of the 6-year-old’s death.
Temperatures in Memphis were forecast to hit 99 degrees Thursday.