A 6-year-old boy on his way to school in the Bronx was hit by a school bus at an intersection where a crossing guard is normally supposed to be stationed, authorities say.
The boy, who is in first grade at Santa Maria School, a Catholic elementary school, was hit by the yellow school bus on Zerega Avenue, according to school officials.
The bus was going northbound on Glebe Avenue and was turning onto Zerega when it struck the boy, who was just steps from school with his 12-year-old sister.
The boy was taken to Jacobi Hospital, where he's in stable condition.
The bus was not connected with the Santa Maria School, officials said.
Officials said a crossing guard is normally stationed at the intersection where the boy was hit, and was scheduled to begin the shift at 7:30 a.m. The guard called out sick, and a replacement guard arrived at 8:45 a.m., after the accident.
In a news conference Thursday, Mayor de Blasio said he would look into securing a better system of replacing crossing guards when they are absent.
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"We have to figure out, when a crossing guard is sick and calls in, a way to provide some kind of backup," he said.
Melissa Russo contributed to this report.
