Elementary school student finds hypodermic needle on bus

BOSTON — An elementary school girl found a hypodermic needle on a school bus Thursday morning, Boston Public Schools told FOX25.

An automated call to parents of children at Winthrop Elementary School in Dorchester informed them that "one of our students found a hypodermic needle and may have been poked," sending the girl to a hospital as a precaution.

Officials tell FOX25 the girl was on a "half-size", or smaller bus, on her way to school when she found the needle in a bus compartment and told the driver. The driver then pulled over on St. Alphonsus Street, in Mission Hill, and called Boston Emergency Medical Services.

Bus drivers are required to perform daily sweeps of the buses, but BPS said they were instructed to do additional checks on half-size buses after the incident.

"It was a little scary when I first heard it, but once I heard that it wasn't my child, my heart kind of settled at ease," said Ashton Antoine whose two daughters attend Winthrop Elementary, but do not ride the bus. "Thank god that my kids are safe, and the kid that went to the hospital, hopefully that they're okay and their family is okay, and they can rectify the situation as quickly as possible."

Boston Public Schools said that they are investigating how the needle ended up on the bus and that "the safety of students and staff is a top priority."

Cox Media Group