Bus Driver Spots Toddler Running Down Street Alone Wearing Nothing But T-Shirt and Underwear
It’s a fact of life that little kids are naturally curious. In many cases, they’re also far too young to understand the protective impulse of fear.
That’s why enthralled tots will occasionally approach some pretty hazardous items. Maybe you’ve had to stop your own little one from touching a hot iron, or standing too close to the patio fire pit.
Many youngsters never even stop to consider that unfamiliar animals or certain grownups might be dangerous. And then, there are the adventurers.
Milwaukee County Transit Authority bus driver Diana Serrano came upon one of these free-wandering kiddos as she was recently starting her route. It’s a nightmare scenario no parent or guardian ever wants to encounter.
Security video shows this two-year-old little girl running unaccompanied down a busy street, just after 6 a.m. local time. The thoroughfare has been identified as Lapham Boulevard, near I-43.
The youngster was ambling right alongside actively moving traffic. She was clad in nothing more than underwear and a light t-shirt.
Serrano spotted the solitary tot as she was driving her bus along the road. A passing motorist had also seen the tiny girl around the same time and instantly halted his car so he could carry her out of harm’s way.
Serrano likewise stopped her bus and got out. WPVI Philadelphia reports that the man needed to get to work, so Serrano took over from there.
She immediately snuggled the sobbing little one into her arms, and together they boarded the bus. The local transit authority said Serrano then notified dispatch and asked them to alert police.
“One of my daughters recently got a cute puppy,” Serrano explained. “I knew showing the girl some pictures would keep her mind off of the scary situation.”
So the two sat in safety and had a reassuring chat. All the while, Serrano kept the girl engaged by swiping through a series of adorable pet photos.
Roughly 10 minutes later, the girl’s worried mom came rushing down the sidewalk. She was searching high and low for her daughter and was relieved to see that a kindly good Samaritan had intervened.
The mother told authorities that her inquisitive tot had managed to sneak out of the house while everyone else was still sleeping. She also expressed gratitude for Serrano’s quick thinking.
Meanwhile, the transit authority noted that this situation doesn’t represent an isolated instance. They said that in total, Milwaukee transit drivers have found no less than eight lost or missing children in the past two years alone.
It’s a sobering reminder to pay very close attention to your little ones — and where appropriate, to investigate home safety devices. Simple curiosity and childlike wonder can lead to some incredibly precarious circumstances.
But at the same time, it’s also a hopeful reminder that guardian angels are present everywhere. It certainly makes sense that Milwaukee is full of good folks because the Potawatomi translation is actually “good land.”
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