A three-year-old girl was left alone on a parked bus for approximately four hours in the central west New South Wales town of Trundle on Wednesday. The incident occurred when the child was supposed to be dropped at the Trundle Children’s Centre around 8:30am but remained on the bus until midday.
A passerby noticed the toddler sitting in the front seat of the unattended bus on Forbes Street and unlocked the vehicle before contacting her parents. Paramedics treated the child at the scene before she was taken to Parkes hospital for assessment. She was later discharged in good health, according to NSW Health.
The Trundle Children’s Centre confirmed the child was left on a privately owned school bus, not a vehicle operated by the centre. In a statement, the centre expressed horror at the incident and said it had been in regular contact with the child’s parents. The centre pledged to do everything possible to prevent a recurrence.
Police are investigating the incident, and a spokesperson for the NSW education department said the department, as regulator of early childhood education and care services, was also examining the case, prioritizing the health, safety, and wellbeing of children.
