As many parents were on their way to pick up their children from Cherokee Elementary School Wednesday, a car struck a student just a half-mile from the school at around 4 p.m.
The female student was on her bicycle crossing from the south side of Kyles Station Road to Aspen Trails Boulevard when an Acura SUV hit her, according to Ohio Highway Patrol Sgt. Brian Bost.
The incident took place only one-tenth of a mile before the school zone starts.
The speed limit on Kyles Station in the Cherokee Elementary school zone is 45 mph during non-school hours and 20 mph when school is in session. According to Bost and the driver, the car was traveling at 30 mph when it struck the girl.
While the investigation is still ongoing, it doesn’t appear that charges will be filed against the driver. The lone witness at the scene told Bost that “there wasn’t anything that could have been done” and that “the girl just darted out in front of the car.”
Furthermore, after the incident took place, Bost said the girl admitted that she wasn’t sure if she checked that side of the street before crossing.
Bost also described the girl to be coherent and was sitting up after the being hit. Bost later went to the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center Liberty Campus to visit the student and was “almost positive” that she would be released that night.
On Thursday, Cherokee Elementary School principal Paulette Grady confirmed in an email sent out to parents that the injuries to the student were not serious.
“The safety of our Cherokee Cheetahs is our number one priority. Together, we can ensure their safety by frequently reminding our children, to walk, ride their bikes, or scooters directly home after school, always to look both ways before crossing the street, and to be mindful of their surroundings. Our diligence and daily safety reminders are very important. Our students do hear us. Even though we take every precaution, accidents do happen.
Yesterday, one of our students was struck by a car. This accident occurred as many parents were on their way to Cherokee to pick up their children. We have been advised that the injuries to this student were not serious. The Cherokee staff and parents came together to assist in any way they could.
I would like to thank all of our families for following our safety procedures at arrival and dismissal. Our Cherokee community is awesome in every way.”
After Lakota cut busing back to state minimum levels, Cherokee parents complained at the start of the 2011-2012 school year about the safety of students without the aid of a crosswalk or crossing guards. (more…)
