A fresh school bus tragedy rocked the UAE again when a four-year-old Emirati KG girl was run over by a car in the eastern oasis town of Al Ain just as she got off the school bus and tried to cross the road without escort, a newspaper reported on Friday.
Fatima has just been let off the bus near her house in Al Yahr neighborhood on Wednesday and was trying to reach the waiting housemaid on the other side of the road when she was knocked over, the Arabic language daily Alittihad said.
It said Fatima suffered from injuries in the head and limbs, and was rushed to Twam Hospital, where she was admitted in coma before regaining her consciousness.
“Fatima has just got off the school bus at the end of the school day and hurried towards the maid on the other side of the road while her mother was busy preparing dinner…at this time, she was run over by a speeding car….doctors said she had regained consciousness and is now in a stable condition.”
The paper said police have opened investigation into the accident to determine responsibility for letting the girl cross the road on her own.
It quoted the girl’s grandfather Hassan Al Buraiki as saying officials from Emirates Transport company have examined the scene and opened an investigation to determine whether there has been negligence by the bus staff.
Fatima’s tragedy came nearly two weeks after four-year-old Indian school girl Naziha died after she was forgotten on the school bus for several hours on a hot day. The bus driver, the female supervisor, the school principal and his aide are on trial in Abu Dhabi after they were charged of responsibility for the girl’s death.