5-year-old left alone on school bus, locked in garage for 7 hours

Carolyn Moccasin is calling for better school bus policies after her son was left in a vehicle for hours on his own.

He was hurt. He was traumatized.- Carolyn Moccasin

On Monday morning, her five-year-old son, Luke Keshane, fell asleep on the bus on his way to school on the Saulteaux First Nation, Sask.

The driver who didn't notice the boy was still on board drove the bus into a garage and left for the day. Temperaturesdipped to 18 C.

Keshane wasn't found until 3 p.m. CST that afternoon.

"[The driver] put a five-year-old boy, my son, in danger," said Moccasin. "What would he do if it was colder that day?"

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Eventually, Keshane managed to escape the bus, but was trapped inside the garage for the rest of the day.

"He told me he was sitting on the ground, crying, when that bus driver found him," she said. "He was hurt. He was traumatized."

It's something that shouldn't have happened. We're very lucky that he's with us here today.- Kenny Moccasin, chief ofSaulteauxFirst Nation

After a brief examination, the school put Keshane back on the bus and sent him home.

Only that afternoon did Moccasinreceivea call at her workplace from the school, more than an hour's drive away.She started panicking.

"I was freaking out," she said. "I didn't know what to do. I was in a state of shock."

Keshane wasn't hurt physically but Moccasin said the event took a toll on her son.

"The night that happened, he cried himself to sleep," she said. "He said, 'Mom. Don't leave me.'"

Mom wants apology, penalty, policies

The driver received a three-day suspension from the First Nation. Moccasin said she wants to see a harsher penalty, as well as a formal apology.

She also wants Saulteaux to put new policies in place, including performing a head count on the bus every morning to make sure all students are accounted for.

"I want the bus drivers to be more aware of who's getting on the bus,who's getting off the bus,getting their names,doing a walk-through," she said. "And to be strict on the rules and regulations."

The chief of the Saulteaux First Nation, Kenny Moccasin, promises that all policies surrounding school buses and attendance will be reviewed, including measures to contact parents when their children are noted absent.

"It's not good at all," he said. "It's something that shouldn't have happened. We're very lucky that he's with us here today."