RICHMOND, Va. — The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) is investigating how a child from the Richmond Montessori School ended up on Parham Road where they were almost hit by a car, according to Todd Reid, a Senior Communications Advisor for VDOE.
Tre Waddy captured video on his dash camera of the incident when he stopped on Parham Road on the morning of Friday, Nov. 22 because he saw a small child running along the side of the road.
Waddy jumped out of his car and rescued the child moments before they darted in front of traffic.
He said that after he brought the child to safety, he walked onto the Richmond Montessori School campus and spoke to one of the child’s teachers, who he said did not react in the way that he expected.
Waddy worried that the school might not tell the child’s parents or the school community about what happened, so he shared the video with Jon Burkett, who did a story about the incident for Saturday’s 11 p.m. news.
Watch: Father rescues toddler running along busy Henrico road
One hour later, the Interim Head of the school, Kimberly Waite, sent a message to the school community telling them a toddler departed his teachers while walking outdoors Friday and ran into Parham Road.
Reid said the VDOE investigation is active and ongoing.
Several CBS 6 viewers asked on social media whether any state or local rules require daycares or preschools to have fencing or barriers to prevent small children from running into nearby roads.
Reid said the state does not set fencing requirements, and they are locality- or site-specific to a facility’s location.
We asked Henrico County if they have any fencing rules, and we are waiting to hear back.
In the meantime, the Richmond Montessori School has installed a temporary fence on the perimeter of the school near where the child ran into Parham Road.
Two teachers who were responsible for the child’s safety are no longer employed at the school, and the school is conducting a comprehensive safety audit.
We also learned the school was inspected by the state for its license renewal just two days before the incident, and no violations were found.
Reid said the investigation "could affect what type of license they will receive — a regular two-year license, or a provisional license.”
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