Editor's note: This article has been updated to remove the name of the Sedalia Middle School student who is quoted and to include information about the GoFundMe.
A Sedalia Middle School student was struck by a car and killed shortly after 3 p.m. Monday while crossing North Engineer Avenue at Saline Street.
“We had a call that a child had been struck by a vehicle,” Sedalia Police Chief Matt Wirt said, “so officers, of course, responded, medical personnel and fire and tried to do the best they could to save the child, but they were unable to, so we're still investigating the accident.”
A statement issued by police stated they received a report of a traffic accident and responded to the scene to find an 11-year-old girl had been struck.
“Sedalia Police, Sedalia Fire, and Pettis County Ambulance District attempted life-saving measures,” the statement read, “but the juvenile succumbed to her injuries. At the time of this release, the name of the victim is not being released pending notification of family. Further information will be available after the investigation and reconstruction of the incident.”
A fellow SMS student had gotten off bus 111 with the girl and they were talking in a group shortly before the accident happened.
“The little girl was, we were talking and like, we were in a group and talking,” the student said. “Me and my friend turned around because she was going home and we didn't know if she ran or was walking, we didn't know. But when we turned around, we heard a car screeching. We turned around and we saw the bookbag. We thought the lady just hit the sign, but there was the little girl's bookbag that you saw.”
Sedalia School District 200 released a statement reading:
“It is with great sadness that we report that a Sedalia Middle School student has passed away. The entire Sedalia 200 community extends our sincere condolences to the student’s family and friends. District counselors will be available at the middle school on Tuesday, Nov. 9. SMS Principal Brett Hieronymus will address students and staff members at the start of the school day.
For parents who are helping their children cope with the grieving process, these suggestions from the National Association of School Psychologists may prove useful:
www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources/school-safety-and-crisis/addressing-grief.”
A GoFundMe has been started to help cover the funeral costs for the young girl who died: https://www.gofundme.com/f/
Sedalia Police are conducting an investigation into the tragic accident and plan to release their findings in the upcoming days.
Anyone with information or who was a witness to this accident is encouraged to contact the Sedalia Police Department Traffic Unit’s Cpl. AJ Silvey or Officer K. Tylar at 660-827-7823.
