Two children were hit by a school bus in Loudoun County, Va., Thursday morning, News4’s David Culver reported.
A group of five children were walking to Belmont Ridge Middle School in Leesburg when a 12-year-old and a 13-year-old were struck by a county bus about 8:15 a.m.
They were taken to a hospital with minor injuries. The bus driver was so upset about the incident that he was hospitalized as well.
The kids were not in a crosswalk, but one car let them pass before they were struck, Culver reported.
"This is students crossing in an unmarked area where they shouldn't have been crossing," Wade Byard with Loudoun Conty Schools told News4. "We stress to students to go to the designated crosswalks, where we've provided crossing guards, but sometimes they take shortcuts."
Grief counselors were available at the school Thursday. Last spring, Loudoun County School Board enforced a policy encouraging students who live one mile or closer to school to walk instead of getting bus service.