Folsom day care allegedly left a 5-year-old strapped in a seat on a bus. Here’s what we know

A Folsom day care is retraining staff members in safety protocols after a child was left on a bus last month.

Jennifer Tracey said her 5-year-old son was found strapped into his bus booster seat crying and drenched in sweat about two hours after arriving at Lexington Hills KinderCare.

The boy was allegedly left on the bus by a staff member on Monday, March 20, between 3 p.m. and 3:20 p.m. after the staff member drove him back from his kindergarten class. Tracy said he was likely driven to his class at around 11:15 a.m.

His father arrived at the KinderCare facility to pick him up around 5:10 p.m., according to Tracey, and discovered he was missing. Following a roughly 12-minute search, he was found in the bus.

Colleen Moran, a spokesperson for KinderCare learning companies, said that the employee in charge of caring for the child is no longer with the company. She said the incident was reported to state licensing and that the company has retrained teachers and staff on bus safety.

“Nothing is more important to us than the safety of the children in our care,” Moran said in a statement. “We’re relieved and grateful that the child wasn’t hurt. However, we have strict safety protocols, specific to bus safety, that should have prevented this kind of situation. Unfortunately, those protocols were not followed.”

Tracey said that even though her son was not physically harmed, he suffered nightmares for several days.

She also said she quit her job because of what happened.

“I can’t trust another facility to take care of my babies,” Tracey said. “I wish no parent has to feel what I’m feeling right now.”

This story was originally published April 3, 2023 at 7:40 PM.