Boy, 5, dies after being left on school bus during 35 C heat wave

On Wednesday morning, the boy, name Gia Huy, boarded a 29-seat bus to attend Hong Nhung Kindergarten in Phu Xuan Commune, with nine other students and a teacher.

After a 9-km journey to the school, the driver opened the door to let the teacher and students go to their classrooms. The driver then parked the bus at the school gate and left.

That morning, the teacher responsible for the class took attendance photos to send to the school's software and noticed Huy was missing but did not inform his family.

When his uncle came to pick him up at around 5 p.m., he was informed the boy had not attended class. The boy was found in the bus parked at the school gate, and despite being rushed to the hospital, he was already deceased upon arrival.

A parent at the same school mentioned that an end-of-year party was scheduled, so children stayed later waiting for their parents. When the boy's uncle discovered his nephew had not attended class, he went to the bus, broke the door, and found him inside.

Hong Nhung Kindergarten, a private preschool established in 2016, has two campuses with approximately 400 students.

According to local authorities, Huy's mother works abroad, and the boy was staying with his grandmother and uncle.

Thai Binh experienced intense heat on Wednesday, with temperatures around 35 degrees Celsius. Experts said temperatures inside a closed car without air-con can be 10 degrees Celsius higher than outside.

In 2019, a similar incident occurred in Hanoi, where a 6-year-old boy died after being left on a school bus. The driver, student supervisor, and a teacher were sentenced to prison for involuntary manslaughter and negligence causing serious consequences.