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2 children hit, killed by tractor-trailer while walking to board school bus in Buckingham County

Posted at 10:47 AM, Mar 30, 2017
and last updated 2017-03-30 16:08:02-04

BUCKINGHAM COUNTY, Va. - Two children were hit and killed by a tractor-trailer Thursday morning as they were walking to board a school bus in Buckingham County.

According to Virginia State Police, the two children were among six at the bus stop. They started running across Route 15 in Dillwyn before the bus had fully stopped. A tractor-trailer approaching in the opposite lane was unable to stop in time and hit the children.

The school bus was in the southbound lane, with yellow flashing lights on, as it had not come to a complete stop, Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corrine Geller said. The red flashing lights and stop sign are triggered when the vehicle comes to a complete stop.

When the school bus driver saw the children crossing, she motioned to the children to go back. They did not.

It was not until the truck driver saw the children run out that he knew he needed to stop, because the bus lights were still flashing yellow.

Photo courtesy CBS19 - Charlottesville

Both children died at the scene. WTVR reports family members have identified the victims as five and six-year-old cousins.

The mother of the five-year-old girl identified her as Tori Perez. The six-year-old has been identified as Jaiden Bartee.

“The community, school, and local clergy had been deployed at all level of the school system to work through this tragedy with children and employees,” a Buckingham Schools spokesperson told WTVR. “The superintendent wants everyone to keep us in prayer during these times.”

Tori Perez, 5, was one of the two victims. | Photo: WTVR

The driver of the tractor-trailer will not be charged.

"There are no violations on this," Geller said.