10-Year-Old Was Killed In Accident At MTA Bus Stop Because School Bus Kept Leaving Without Him, Father Claims
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – The father of a 10-year-old boy killed by an out-of-control SUV while waiting at a city bus stop is speaking for the first time about the tragedy.
That grieving parent is putting part of the blame on his son's school.
It was only their son's second time taking a city bus home from school and his parents say the only reason he was standing at that Brooklyn stop is because the sixth grader's school bus left without him.
"We lost our baby and he's not coming back," heartbroken mother Mary Farachio said.
The heartbreak is insurmountable for the parents of 10-year-old Enzo Farachio – killed at a bus stop on Ocean Avenue Tuesday afternoon.
"How am I doing? Terrible. Every five minutes I'm thinking about my kid. I try to be alright but it's impossible," the boy's father Angel Farachio said.
Police say the 60-year-driver had a medical episode and jumped the curb, where the young student was waiting for an MTA bus.
Angel Farachio says his son had been trying to take the school bus home, but day after day it left without him.
"So he got out of school 2:20 and when he wants to take the bus it's already gone… I don't know for what reason the yellow bus couldn't wait for my kid all the time," the father said.
Farachio tells CBS2 Enzo's older brother usually picked him up when the school bus left him stranded, but this week the 10-year-old wanted to be independent.
"The school gives a MetroCard to him… He said 'mommy I can do it let me do it.'"
Two days later, neighbors and city officials gathered where Enzo was killed, consoling his family and trying to make sense of tragedy.
"I feel very disappointed with the school," Enzo's father added.
"We will not rest until families are safe from traffic violence," City Speaker Corey Johnson declared.
"Let's make Brooklyn a safer place for all children," the child's mother added.
CBS2 asked the Department of Education about its procedure when young students miss their bus home as well as why Enzo's school left without him, the DOE said it is looking into it.
"We send our deepest condolences to the family and school community after this tragic loss, and we are referring this allegation for investigation," a DOE spokesman said.
