LONDONDERRY — An 11-year-old Londonderry Middle School student suffered a broken arm when a school bus struck her on her way home yesterday afternoon, School Superintendent Nate Greenberg said.
She was treated at Parkland Medical Center and was expected to be released from the hospital last night. The girl, whose name is not being released, hoped to return to school today, Greenberg said.
"We're very thankful she was not injured more seriously," he said.
Greenberg said the girl was crossing the street in front of the bus when the accident happened.
The driver, Lisa Ciano, 33, of Londonderry, could not immediately be reached for comment. Police have not decided yet if she will be charged.
The accident is under investigation, police Lt. Scott Saunders said. Goffstown Truck, which owns and operates Londonderry school buses, could not be reached for comment. A woman who answered the telephone at the company's Londonderry terminal refused to comment or give her name.
The Londonderry school buses have been involved in several minor accidents over the last calendar year, but overall, the bus company has a good safety record, Greenberg said. The drivers travel more than 500,000 miles on routes in town, he said. Greenberg said he didn't know if any action would be taken against the bus driver.
The accident happened around 3 p.m., in front of an apartment building near 107 Capitol Hill Drive, Saunders said. According to the preliminary investigation, the accident happened after the girl was dropped off the bus near her home. She was on her cell phone talking to her mother when the bus struck her. He categorized the girl's injuries as minor and said they involved her face, head and hands.
"Two other students were on the bus at the time of the accident, but no one else was injured," he wrote in a Police Department press release. Police brought the two students home.
A student who witnessed the accident said the girl was riding the bus home.
"She was getting off," Levi Pearce, 13, of Londonderry said. "She was crossing the street."
