Hours after a 7-year-old student with special needs died in her wheelchair on an Ohio school bus, the district superintendent told school board members that the child had not been properly secured, according to newly revealed correspondence.
Ngone Talla, a nonverbal Cincinnati Public Schools student with developmental disabilities, was found unresponsive in her wheelchair after the bus arrived at her home on the afternoon of Sept. 16. Her family said they were shocked to discover her aboard the vehicle.
The Hamilton County Coroner’s Office classified Ngone’s death as accidental. An autopsy determined that she died from positional asphyxia and cited a “delay in care.” However, emails obtained by FOX19 NOW from Superintendent Shauna Murphy provide a disturbing account of what happened after the bus reached the family’s home.
“I spoke with Mr. John Keening from First Student. He shared the driver and monitor on Ngone’s bus did not strap her on appropriately, causing her death,” Murphy wrote to the school board just hours after the incident, according to the news outlet.
First Student, the company that operated the bus, confirmed that its CEO spoke with Murphy that evening but disputed the superintendent’s early conclusion.
“At that point, no investigation had taken place, and many facts were still unknown,” the company said in a statement to FOX19 NOW.
First Student added that “the characterization of the conversation does not reflect the circumstances surrounding the incident or the findings subsequently outlined in the coroner’s report.”
Ngone’s family said the bus remained parked outside their home for about 10 minutes, longer than usual, before they went outside to check on it.
That was when relatives found the child unresponsive inside the bus.
Ngone was taken to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The autopsy report said Ngone had been seated in her wheelchair and secured with a five-point harness. The system typically includes two shoulder straps, two lap or waist straps and a strap running between the legs, according to the report cited by the outlet.
“During movement of the extremities, the buttocks slipped off the wheelchair seat with the torso turned to the right,” the report stated. It said her “right neck and chin” were compressed by the seatbelt and restraint system.
In a statement issued Friday, Cincinnati Public Schools said a comprehensive review is necessary to establish exactly what happened.
“It is critically important that a thorough review take place so that we have a clear and accurate understanding of the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident,” the district said, according to the local station.
“We owe that to the family, our students, and the community. The Board will not rush to judgment or make determinations before that process is complete,” CPS added.
The Post contacted First Student and Cincinnati Public Schools for comment.