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School bus crash, parents demand change
There is a call for change after dozens of kids were hurt earlier this year in an Ozaukee County school bus crash.
OZAUKEE COUNTY, Wis. - There’s a call for change after dozens of kids were hurt in a school bus crash in Ozaukee County.
That crash happened two months ago at County Highway E and Jay Road in Fredonia. The bus was a Random Lake School District bus with 36 students on board, ranging from elementary school to high school age.
Parents now demand a safer intersection.
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On Sept. 16, Jodi Payne got a phone call no parent wanted to get. Her daughter and nephew were on the school bus.
"Our kids are very traumatized," Payne said. "When my nephew called and told me they were hit – I knew exactly where it was."
Investigators say a Jeep blew a stop sign and flipped the bus. Eight kids went to the hospital.
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"My daughter had to push the neighbor’s child off of her who was unconscious," she said. "It’s sad that it has to come to this."
Concerned parents brought photos to Fredonia officials and it ended up working. Now there will be two flashing stop signs at Jay Road.
But parents say that's not enough.
"We’re not going to stop until we get four-way flashing lights," Payne said.
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Wednesday's vote was unanimous and parents know this might not solve all the problems. But here's the trickier part: it's one intersection controlled by two different groups.
The Town of Fredonia owns Jay Road, while Highway E is under Ozaukee County's jurisdiction.
"It’s the lack of statistics so you kind of have to wait for something bad to happen and it’s the driving force behind it – people coming to a meeting and demanding that change," said Village Administrator and Town of Fredonia Clerk Christophe Jenkins.
Payne said she doesn’t plan to stop those demands for change any time soon.
"If we have to go to every meeting, every month for the next three years, that’s what we’re going to do," she said.
The group of parents say they plan to speak at the Ozaukee County Public Works meeting next Thursday. They plan to ask for additional signage on County Highway E.